


Scream of Solitude

by Zora_The_Dragon



Category: Transformers: Prime, Transformers: War for Cybertron
Genre: Alone, Distrust, Other, Pollution - Freeform, Science, Solitude, Struggle, cybertronian nature, deserter, mechanimals, metalo-plants, neutral, neutral!starscream, rogue - Freeform, rogue!starscream, starscream has had enough of the war, turbofox
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:34:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 92,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24378055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zora_The_Dragon/pseuds/Zora_The_Dragon
Summary: Starscream joins no side during the war for Cybertron, instead staying neutral. He goes rogue on the Seekers, wanting no part of the war anymore. But without Energon, he is forced to follow the Autobots and Decepticons to Earth, struggling to survive on his own. The Autobots try to convince him to join them. The Decepticons want to capture him. But Starscream doesn't trust anyone.
Relationships: Starscream & Cliffjumper, Thundercracker & Skywarp
Comments: 18
Kudos: 69





	1. The Invasion

**Author's Note:**

> I was asked by LadyKDQ if I could write a Neutral!Starscream fic, and how could I say no.  
> I should not be making another WIP, but here we are!  
> Not sure yet if I'm gonna rewrite whole episodes as chapters like I do with TGTBAS, I'll have to think about it, I probably won't though. I'll just roll with whatever makes sense.  
> Well, hope you'll enjoy this new story:)

Civil war had ravaged Cybertron, homeworld of the Transformers, for millions of years. Megatron, leader of the Decepticons, recently discovered an ancient power that would give him the edge to win over the hated Autobots.

Called Dark Energon, this power remained locked away in an orbital station under the protection of a Sky Commander named Starscream.

Starscream had no intention of letting Megatron get his hands on the Dark Energon. For it was a dangerous substance, capable of destroying Cybertron itself if enough was acquired. Centuries ago, there had been an accident on Trypticon Station, where a stash of Dark Energon had exploded and destroyed nearly a quarter of the entire station. As a result, only small stocks were kept in the station since, to prevent further such accidents from happening.

And now, Megatron had begun his invasion of that very same station, intent on getting a hold of the Dark Energon. As soon as the guards reported the incoming Decepticon forces, Starscream ordered everyone, both Seekers and Grounders to fight back, whether using battle ships or their own alternate modes. Starscream himself remained with his Air Commanders, among them being Jetfire, Thundercracker and Skywarp, in the conference room deep within the heart of the station, trying to plan out their next moves.

"We need to use everything we've got," Starscream said. "And blow them away before they can even arrive here."

"Isn't that overkill?" Thundercracker asked. "It's just a few ships, we've got thousands of warriors and a giant plasma cannon available. There's no way we'll lose."

"We can't let the Decepticons get a hold of the Dark Energon," Starscream replied. "It would be the end of us all. And the war wouldn't have gone this long if our invaders were weak."

"Starscream's right," Jetfire went in. "There must be a reason why they chose to only send this few. But I also agree with Thundercracker, we can't use all our fighters, we'd leave the station under-guarded."

"Why not just fire that big cannon we got?" Skywarp suggested. "It should blow them to bits in seconds, and we won't have to waste any more Seekers."

"It's already launching fire on them every few seconds," Starscream replied. "And has a very unprecise aim, easy for them to avoid with their small cruisers. We need to send more warriors."

"Why don't you do something yourself then, Commander?" Skywarp snapped. "Go out there and face this Mega-something yourself, huh?"

"I do not appreciate your tone, Skywarp," Starscream snarled. "And there is no need for me or any of you to get involved in this fight. The troops will take care of it."

A violent tremor shook the whole room the Air Commanders and Sky Commander were standing in. They all fell onto the floor, taken by surprise at the tremor.

"What was that?!" Starscream exclaimed.

"Commander Starscream," a purple Seeker shouted as she came running into the room from the hallway leading to the containment chamber. "One of the Decepticon ships has crashed into the station."

"Any survivors?" Starscream asked as he and the others got up.

"Affirmative," she replied. "And it looks like the leader's among them. They're entering the station right now."

Starscream snarled and swore. "Didn't I tell you?" he hissed at the others. "Now I'll have to go activate the defense systems! Jetfire, get out there and lead a squadron to fight back their air support!"

"Right away," Jetfire said and reverted to jet mode, zooming out through the semi-windows leading to the outside.

"Thundercracker, get to the control systems and lock the doors! We need to block their way here."

"I'll get right to it," Thundercracker replied and left the conference room before assuming alternate mode to get to the control room.

"Skywarp, assemble the troops and fight back the invaders within the station!"

"Yessir!" Skywarp said and ran out of the conference room to find the troops.

"Slipstream," Starscream said to the femme, "remain here and report if anything changes."

Slipstream frowned for a brief moment before nodding. "As you wish, Commander," she replied.

"I will go speak with this Decepticon leader," Starscream informed before he too left the conference room, leaving Slipstream behind to guard the place.

Slipstream sighed in annoyance as she stood by the monitors, awaiting further orders and keeping an optic on everything.

"I'm an Air Commander, yet somehow I'm just a guard," she hissed to herself. "One of these days, I'll show that self-absorbed, loathsome lunatic what I'm made of..."

* * *

As Starscream left the conference room, he went over to one of the communications panels and accessed it. Wherever these Decepticons were, he would be able to give them a warning and a chance to turn back, before this invasion could escalate into an all-out battle. Starscream would rather not lose too many of his troops, but protection of the station was utmost important, especially as they had been tasked with this by the High Council and Zeta Prime himself, eons ago.

Soon, the communications link opened, and Starscream received a live video feed of three gray Decepticons, one with two cannons on his back, a small black one, and one big mech in the middle with a large fusion cannon mounted on his right arm.

 _That must be the leader,_ Starscream thought while gazing at the middle mech. _I can sense power and dominance from this one._

On their side, the communications link displayed a large hologram of Starscream himself. Having made the connection, Starscream began to speak through the microphone.

"I am Starscream," he introduced himself. "And I have protected my station for over a thousand years!"

The mech in the middle with the fusion cannon shoved his two comrades aside and stepped forward.

" _I am Megatron, leader of the Decepticons,_ " the mech rumbled at the hologram. " _This space station is Decepticon property! Surrender immediately!_ "

Starscream barked a laugh at the threat. "Whoever you are, you've traveled a long way just to meet your doom!"

Knowing where the invaders were now, Starscream activated the turrets and marked their location on his personal map of the station. Afterwards, he shut down the link and the hologram of himself, and then he opened a comm. to his Air Commanders. He told the coordinates of the invaders, and each of them got to work with their respective missions.

Thundercracker locked the doors around the area and activated the defense drones and turrets; Skywarp led the guards through the various sections of the station, after which he teleported away to lead the next group of guards from a different path; and Jetfire patrolled the area outside the station, assigning the Seekers to different posts and to take care of the reinforcements outside.

While his Air Commanders were doing their respective objectives, Starscream himself kept track of this 'Megatron's' position and activated the various traps and defense mechanisms installed on the station thousands of years ago. It was a pretty old facility, and much of its technology was outdated and antiquated, but Starscream was confident it would do the job.

Unfortunately, Megatron and his forces turned out to be much tougher than first assumed. Even though there were only three of them leading the main attack, they plowed through Starscream's troops like they were nothing. Megatron was accompanied by a big brute called Brawl, a Combaticon worthy of the name, and a smaller mech called Barricade, quick and effective in dealing with opponents without getting scratched himself.

But their leader, Megatron, was the very definition of a warrior. Before the war, he had been the greatest gladiator on Cybertron, and before that, he had been but a simple miner. No one had expected Megatron to pose as big a threat as he did. No one had expected him to not only start, but survive through a civil war lasting for millions of years. And certainly no one had expected Megatron to find out about the existence of Dark Energon and try to invade Trypticon Station, where it existed.

As Starscream had said, Skywarp and Thundercracker did not get involved in the battle themselves, merely doing their part to hinder Megatron the best they could. Jetfire led the air force outside and did fight the invaders himself, though the attackers on the outside were beginning to thin out. This was more due to the fact that they were moving inside the station than the fact that their forces were dwindling.

Starscream observed the path Megatron was taking on his map. As he saw where they were heading, he got an idea and opened a comm. link.

"This is Commander Starscream," he announced. "The invaders are leaving the storage chamber and are heading for the next room. I will transmit the coordinates. Prepare an ambush!"

" _Yes, Commander Starscream!_ " sounded from his comm.

Starscream transmitted the coordinates and waited for the troops to gather and prepare the ambush. It took a few minutes before they reported back.

" _Starscream, the ambush is set,_ " a soldier reported. " _They won't make it past us._ "

"I shall hold you to that, soldier," Starscream replied.

" _Yessir!_ "

With that, the comm. link ended, and Starscream stepped away. He began pacing back and forth, waiting for the results of the ambush. Barely half an hour later, his comm. link pinged.

"Yes?" he said. "Have you taken care of the invaders?"

" _Negative, Commander,_ " the caller replied. " _They saw right through us and ambushed the ambush! They're advancing to-ARGH!_ "

The comm. was abruptly ended. The caller had likely just been blasted to bits. Starscream swore and returned to the communications panel, opening an audio link to across the station.

"Megatron!" Starscream snarled. "I thought you'd be scrap metal by now. Your survival... intrigues me."

" _I shall not be denied, Starscream,_ " Megatron replied back over the comm. " _Surrender your Dark Energon program to me immediately!_ "

"Dark Energon...? Are you _mad_? Dark Energon brings only death and chaos!"

" _I am COUNTING on it,_ " Megatron replied back.

Starscream snarled and ended the comm. "So he _is_ looking for the Dark Energon after all," he mused to himself as he paced around, thinking about what to do now. "And he's not so weak either. This could prove troublesome. Thundercracker!" he added on the comm. "Lock the doors in sector 43! Megatron's headed in that direction! Do not let him advance!"

" _On it!_ " Thundercracker replied.

"Skywarp," Starscream called on another comm. "Send reinforcements to sector 43! We'll eradicate the invaders with no way of letting them escape!"

" _Got it, boss,_ " Skywarp said.

"Starscream," Slipstream shouted, having left the conference room, catching Starscream's attention. "I have news!"

"Didn't I tell you to stay in the conference room?!" Starscream snarled at the femme. "Get back in there and-"

"The Decepticons have taken over one of our command centers," Slipstream interrupted. "And captured the troops stationed there."

"What?!" Starscream exclaimed. "How can that be? Why didn't you tell me this sooner?"

"Because I first got the report now!" Slipstream hissed. "Apparently this 'Megatron' guy had his intelligence officer sneak in from another path and ambush the guards before they could report anything."

"Scrap," Starscream swore. "Just what we needed, the invaders having access to a base of operations within _my_ station! This is outrageous!"

"What can I do, sir?" Slipstream asked.

"Get back in the conference room and obtain more information," Starscream snarled. "And next time you have something to report to me, do it over the comm.! We can't waste time with these bots, they're stronger than I thought!"

"Fine, I'll get to it, _sir_ ," Slipstream snarled back and returned to the conference room.

Starscream snorted in her direction. Soon, a comm. from Thundercracker opened.

" _Uhh, Starscream, we have a problem here,_ " Thundercracker reported.

"What is it?" Starscream growled.

" _I locked all the doors, but the invaders figured out to use the shielded hallway as an escape route, by cutting its power._ "

"What? Why did you leave the hallway open?!"

" _We needed to get the troops through to blow 'em up, remember?_ " Skywarp's voice sounded from a new comm. " _Like you ordered us to?_ "

"Argh, I can't believe this is happening!" Starscream snarled in frustration. "Follow them and don't let them out of sight! Use your fragging maps, for Primus' sake!"

" _Yessir!_ " the two Seekers replied before cutting the comm.

Starscream returned to his pacing and fumed in frustration.

"I'm surrounded by morons," he hissed to himself. "Can't anybot do _anything_ right in this place?! Jetfire, status report!"

" _Megatron has arrived in the captured command center, I'm afraid,_ " Jetfire reported on the comm. " _I tried to talk him out of it, but he won't listen._ "

"I suspect no amount of talk will convince him to stop, my friend," Starscream replied. "Any remaining attackers outside?"

" _Negative. I think we got them all._ "

"Circle the station just to be sure. Assign patrol units and guard the shattered section. If Megatron plans to acquire the Dark Energon, he will have to go through there. It doesn't seem like he or his followers are capable of flight. We have the advantage as Seekers. Get to it, Jetfire!"

" _Yes, Starscream!_ " With that, Jetfire left the comm.

Starscream sighed as he resumed his pacing. "It's barely been half a day, and already this Megatron has taken control of a fifth of the station. And it seems he has more forces striking us than we anticipated. This Megatron is a clever bot. Too clever. Thundercracker, status report!"

" _I have locked down all logical routes to the Dark Energon reactor, Starscream,_ " Thundercracker reported. " _Now they won't be getting here so easily._ "

Starscream smirked. Finally, something was going his way. The smirk fell a second later as a thought struck his mind.

"What about the _illogical_ routes?" he asked.

" _What do you mean?_ "

"This Megatron bot is erratic and unpredictable. He anticipated our ambush and took advantage of your sloppy sealing of section 43. Are you certain there is _no_ route to take to get to my position?"

" _Uh..._ "

"I need an answer, Thundercracker!"

" _Well..._ "

"Is there or is there not?"

" _There is one route I couldn't get access to,_ " Thundercracker finally admitted. " _But it's old and dangerous, and there's no way Megatron would know where it is without access to a Data Matrix Center._ "

Starscream felt his insides twisting. "You mean, like the one they are currently within a klik's distance away from?" he asked strangely calmly. "You remembered to lock the doors to that section... right?"

There was silence for a moment.

"RIGHT?!"

" _I... uh... I'll be right back,_ " Thundercracker replied and abruptly ended the comm.

Starscream snarled and opened another comm. "Skywarp, make sure the Data Matrix Chamber near Megatron's location is properly guarded! It is, isn't it?"

" _It is, Starscream,_ " Skywarp replied. " _They won't be making it through here so easy-Uh-oh._ "

"'Uh-oh'? What does 'uh-oh' mean?"

" _Uhhhhh, call you right back!_ " And the comm. was cut.

Starscream let out a shriek of anger. "Thousands of years of nothing but an explosion that destroyed a quarter of the station," he growled. "And now suddenly there's an entire invasion, and for some reason _everyone_ is unprepared and _A BUNCH OF COMPLETE AND UTTER IDIOTS!_ "

Starscream paced back and forth in an attempt to calm his anger. "Maybe I _should_ go meet this Megatron myself," he mused. "Give him a piece of my mind. If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself."

Starscream paused in his pacing and thought a bit more. "On the other hand, if this mech is as strong as it appears, even I might not stand a chance against him in a battle. Of course, I'm not a weakling like everyone else in this facility. If anyone stands a chance against this maniac, it is I. Then again... why bother, when they're not even anywhere near this place yet? There will be no need for me to participate directly in this battle. Everything will be fine."

Starscream went to the control panel and found the current location of Megatron and his followers. He activated the traps in the next room they entered, and ordered guards to enter with shields and fight back the invaders. They still had the advantage in numbers and knowing their way around the station. Megatron didn't. They could still win this battle.

" _Starscream, I got some bad news,_ " Skywarp reported. " _Megatron defeated the troops and has now taken over the Data Matrix Chamber. And now they know where to go to get to your position._ "

"You've got to be kidding me," Starscream snarled and opened a holographic link to the chamber. "Megatron! You may have gotten this far... but you'll never get your hands on the Dark Energon!"

" _Starscream... this acrimony is needless,_ " Megatron replied, strangely calm. " _I know who you once were, Sky Commander, and that you were betrayed. With Dark Energon, I shall return Cybertron to its former glory - and you to yours - IF you agree to serve me._ "

Starscream stared at the video feed as he listened to Megatron's words. He snarled in offense.

"You're a fool! No one can control Dark Energon!" And with that, he closed the link and opened another. "They're in the Data Matrix Chamber! Take them down!"

Starscream went back to his pacing. Megatron knew about him? Sure, Starscream used to be a famous Sky Commander, not to mention the former Winglord of Vos, which had been blown to bits eons ago now, by Tarn, which in turn was blown to bits by Vos itself, at the same time. Now, Starscream was Winglord of nothing, and now he could barely even call himself Sky Commander anymore, having been assigned to be a simple guard over this floating fortress for the last thousand years or so. Now was his chance to show everyone what he was made of, but the protection of the Dark Energon was more important than getting into a fight with a mad warlord.

"There is no way I would follow a bot like him," Starscream grumbled to himself. "I know his kind. He's nothing more than a brute, a simple gladiator who knows nothing other than slaughter. Why should I follow a maniac like him? I would rather abandon this place and let Cybertron rust than follow a lowly bot like Megatron."

Starscream paused in his pacing, thinking further on that thought. "That will be the last resort," he decided. "I'm not letting him have the Dark Energon. Even if I have to destroy it."

He'd rather not destroy the Dark Energon. Not so much because he wanted to use it, but because he worried how much the destruction of the substance would destroy of the station with it. It was very difficult to get rid of this element, just as difficult as it was with regular Energon. The only way to do this was to make it explode, but Dark Energon was incredibly destructive, so that would be the second last resort.

"As long as we can hinder Megatron from reaching this chamber, I won't have to risk my life destroying the stuff," Starscream decided. "But if he does, I won't let him or anyone have it."

" _Commander Starscream,_ " Slipstream reported on the comm. " _It looks like Megatron found a way. He's heading for the manufacturing plant, and it's not blocking the path to our position._ "

"Can anyone deliver any _good_ news for once?" Starscream grumbled. "Keep track of his position, Slipstream. Skywarp, send all guards to the manufacturing plant immediately! Don't let Megatron get through!"

" _Right! You can count on me, sir!_ " The comm. ended, and Starscream was once again left in silence to pace around.

"Can I, though?" he mused, starting to get worried. "This isn't good. If they get through the plant, it's only a matter of time before they reach the shattered section, and then only the Seekers will be able to stop them from reaching this place."

Almost an hour passed before someone reported in.

" _Starscream, bad news,_ " Slipstream reported.

"What a surprise," Starscream said in a defeated tone. "What is it _this_ time?"

" _I'm afraid the Decepticons made it through the manufacturing plant and have reached the shattered sector._ "

Starscream's Spark skipped a beat. "Skywarp!" he shrieked on another comm. "The shattered sector is guarded, right?!"

" _Uh... I don't think so,_ " Skywarp replied. " _Why?_ "

Starscream keened. "Jetfire! Send Seekers to the shattered sector immediately! Megatron has just arrived there!"

" _Right away, Starscream!_ " Jetfire replied.

Starscream turned off his comm. and paced even faster around the chamber. "Scrap, scrap, scrap, scrap," he swore. "If the Seekers can't stop them, then their arrival here is imminent. It looks like I'll have to destroy the Dark Energon after all."

Starscream paused and vented deeply, trying to calm himself. "No need to worry here," he said to himself. "The Seekers are the best Fliers on Cybertron, and they are nothing if not highly trained. We have the advantage in air support here. And the gaps between the debris in the shattered sector are so large that they won't be able to jump through them all, not unless they possess jet boosters! And it sounds like they're Grounders, so naturally they don't possess those. They will never get here."

" _Starscream, they're closing in,_ " Jetfire reported. " _The Seekers are falling one by one._ "

"Can _anything_ go right today?!" Starscream shrieked. "Send _all_ the Seekers to their position!"

" _No one wants to go anywhere near those bots, Starscream,_ " Jetfire replied. " _They're losing their will to fight, I can't convince them to go!_ "

"Fragging cowards!" Starscream yelled. "Don't you dare leave me here by myself, Jetfire! If those morons won't do the job, you do it!"

" _As much as I want to, I can't fight these bots by myself, Starscream,_ " Jetfire protested. " _What should we do?_ "

Starscream thought for a moment. "Keep following them," Starscream ordered. "Force the Seekers to fight if you have to! Threaten them, shoot them, do whatever it takes to make them fight! We can't let Megatron reach this chamber!"

Jetfire made an irking sound on the comm. " _I will... do what I can,_ " he replied and cut the comm.

Starscream let out a rattling sigh. "This is unbelievable, how could things end up this badly?" he said to himself.

Barely a moment later, Jetfire opened his comm. again. " _Starscream, they've arrived at your position!_ " he practically exclaimed. " _They're on their way inside! I can't stop them anymore!_ "

Starscream stiffened and felt his Spark skip a beat. "They're here?" he asked in disbelief. " _They're HERE?!_ "

Starscream reverted to jet mode and opened a comm. to all his Air Commanders as he flew up within the protective force field surrounding the reactor.

"Everyone, regroup in the conference room immediately!" he shrieked. "I will destroy the Dark Energon, and then we must get away from this place!"

" _We're coming!_ " Skywarp, Thundercracker and Jetfire replied. Slipstream remained silent on the comm.

As Starscream reached the top of the chamber, he noticed the three bots, Barricade, Brawl and Megatron enter the room. He reverted to bot mode in front of them and used his jet boosters to remain airborne.

"Impossible!" Starscream exclaimed in disbelief and shock. "No one has survived to reach this place!"

"You shall soon learn, Starscream..." Megatron said and took a step forward, his voice much louder and growlier than over the comm. " _I_ decide what is possible and what isn't!"

Starscream snarled and opened a comm. "Guards! Hold him off while I destroy the last of the Dark Energon remnants!"

Starscream turned his back on the Decepticon invaders and instead accessed the monitor right where he was. The force field surrounding the reactor was strong enough that it would protect him from the invaders' attacks, should they try attacking him right there and then. In the background, he heard the roar of his guards as they made their way to Megatron and the others. He briefly gazed to the side and watched as the three Decepticons began making their way down.

Starscream turned back to the screen and accessed the Dark Energon stash. Destroying this substance was one of the last things he had wanted to do, but it seemed he no longer had a choice. The only thing he was more worried about in that moment than Megatron getting to the Energon in time was how bad the explosion would be. They would have to evacuate immediately.

Starscream heard several explosions from bombs and fusion cannons being fired. He felt himself pressed for time.

"Stop him!" Starscream shouted desperately on his comm. "I need more time to initiate the sequence!"

But Megatron's forces were already nearing the bottom, where they would be able to get under the protective force field and get access to not only the Dark Energon, but also Starscream himself.

"There's no time to destroy just the Dark Energon," Starscream hissed to himself. "I will have to destroy this entire sector!"

He was hesitant. He wouldn't have long to leave if he initiated self-destruct in this sector, and even if it did destroy the Dark Energon and the invaders, it could very well destroy the rest of the station as well.

"No, I must simply destroy the reactor," he said and accessed the controls to the reactor. "The force field should contain most of the explosion, hopefully it will leave this sector intact. Or at least the rest of the station."

Without further hesitation, he found the overload button and pressed it. He laughed merrily as he transformed and went for cover.

"You're too late!" Starscream cackled on the comm. in the chamber. "I have initiated the destruction sequence!"

It would take a few minutes for the reactor to self-destruct. Starscream entered the conference room to meet up with the others.

"Starscream," Jetfire greeted. "We're all here."

"How's it looking, boss?" Skywarp asked.

"You're blowing up the Dark Energon?" Thundercracker stated.

"It's the only way," Starscream replied. "Slipstream, activate the force field here. We're going to endure it."

"Yessir," Slipstream replied sourly. That femme was always so grumpy.

Soon, the sound of fighting ceased. And soon after, the sound of more firing and explosions sounded.

"What? I thought the fight was finished," Skywarp replied. "What's going on?"

Starscream gazed at the door. "They must be trying to destroy the containment field," he assumed. "Fools. They're trying to stop the destruction sequence by disrupting the reactor!"

"What do we do now?" Thundercracker asked concerned.

Starscream gazed at the door for a moment. "Open the door," he said to Slipstream. "I will handle this."

Slipstream stared at Starscream for a moment. "Are you sure, sir?" she asked.

"I am certain," Starscream snarled. "Open it _now_!"

Without further argument, Slipstream opened the door and deactivated the force field to let Starscream through. Starscream initiated jet mode and promptly left through the hallway into the chamber. He didn't know if he would be able to actually stop Megatron or even hold up against him in a fight, but it seemed there was no other choice. Starscream wasn't a weakling, he had taken on brutes bigger and badder than Megatron in the past.

When Starscream arrived at Megatron's position by the Dark Energon containment field - which, as predicted, had been destroyed - he reverted to bot mode and landed gracefully on the floor. But Megatron did not even offer him a glance, he just stood and stared into the gassy Dark Energon which was beginning to escape its containment. He slowly made his way there. Starscream scoffed at the sight.

"You arrogant _fool_!" Starscream shouted, both amused and slightly concerned about this mech's sanity. "No one has ever survived direct contact!"

Megatron did not even give him a reply. He just jumped directly into the containment chamber, right into the Dark Energon. Starscream felt a rush in his tanks, waiting for the Dark Energon to destroy the foolish warlord and gladiator.

But it didn't. Brawl and Barricade both stepped back in surprise, and even Starscream was taken aback. Instead of making him explode, the Dark Energon was absorbed by Megatron, and when the light from the unstable element disappeared, Megatron reappeared, not just whole, but glowing and sparkling, almost _transformed_.

"What? This isn't possible!" Starscream exclaimed and backed away in disbelief. "No! No one can control Dark Energon! It dominates and destroys everything it touches!"

Megatron laughed merrily while looking at himself and his sparkling body, and Starscream felt his courage and confidence leave him completely. This was no normal mech. There was no way Starscream could fight this bot, let alone defeat him.

"I... am the dominator," Megatron bellowed and descended to the ground with a tremor. "I... am the destroyer! I am _MEGATRON_!"

Starscream promptly transformed and fled the scene before Megatron could set his optics on him. He raced full speed to the conference room, through the open door, and reverted back to bot mode.

"Close the door, turn the force field back on, hurry!" Starscream shrieked at Slipstream, who immediately got to it.

"What's going on?" Jetfire asked concerned, as the door was closed and shielded. "Why are you back already?"

"Did you show that Megatron guy who's boss?" Skywarp asked.

Starscream stared at them all three. "That guy is dangerous," he said, strangely quiet. "He just absorbed the Dark Energon I tried to destroy. It... it made him _stronger_."

"What?!" Jetfire exclaimed in disbelief. "This can't be!"

"So what are we gonna do now, huh, Commander?" Slipstream asked from the side. "If he's as strong as we've seen, and can control that Dark stuff, I don't think the force field's gonna hold."

Starscream glanced from Slipstream to the door and back to his three Air Commanders. His mind was blank. He didn't know what to do. Every possible bad outcome had taken place. Every thing that could go wrong went wrong. The Decepticons had been so few, yet they had completely annihilated Starscream's forces and mowed their way through to the very thing the Seekers had been tasked with protecting.

"Starscream?" Jetfire called concerned. "Are you alright?"

"We've lost this battle," Starscream hissed. "And you ask me if I'm _alright_?! We have to evacuate this place if we are to survive!"

"We can't let Megatron have Trypticon Station and the Dark Energon!" Jetfire protested. "If they get this, Cybertron is doomed!"

"There's barely any Dark Energon left," Starscream protested back. "Whatever's left won't be enough for Megatron to do whatever he wants! If we leave, he'll only get an empty husk!"

"No, Jetfire's right," Thundercracker protested. "Trypticon Station is more than just a facility, remember? It's-"

Before Thundercracker could continue, an explosion sounded behind them, and the Air Commanders looked at the door.

"They're coming," Skywarp said. "The force field is down, and now they're coming for us!"

"Way to state the obvious, Skywarp," Slipstream snapped from the monitor and stepped back. "I'll just be over here in the corner if anyone needs me..."

"What are you doing?" Starscream snarled. "Get over here!"

"Nope!"

Starscream snarled but pulled his attention away from Slipstream, instead focusing on the window behind them. It was their only escape route. But if they escaped, Megatron would have Trypticon Station and everything in it, Dark Energon or not. Thundercracker was right, there was more to this station than met the eye. It was said that the station was the dormant form of a Titan. If Megatron got control over the station, he would likely learn this eventually, and then he would use this Titan to fight back the Autobots. Not only would he win the war, he would likely even end up destroying most of Cybertron.

Starscream stared into the thin air, desperately thinking of a solution here. He could only think of three options here: run away and survive, but leave Trypticon Station in Megatron's hands; stay and fight and face certain doom, also leaving Trypticon Station in Megatron's hands; or stay and beg for mercy and join Megatron, risky but with a chance of survival, and naturally letting Trypticon Station fall into Megatron's hands.

"Trypticon Station is lost, no matter what we decide to do," Starscream barely whispered. "The only choice we can make is to determine if we are to survive or not."

"We're giving up?!" Jetfire exclaimed in disbelief. "We can't just give up! We have to-"

Before Jetfire could continue his lecture, a lightning struck through the door and broke it down. The Seekers turned around and gazed at the emergence of Megatron, Brawl and Barricade, all sparkling with the power of Dark Energon.

"Dark Energon is _mine_ to command," Megatron declared as the Decepticons entered the conference room. "Through my will alone shall Cybertron be restored!"

Starscream took a step back in uncertainty while Jetfire took a step forward in confidence.

"It's too unstable, Megatron!" Jetfire said, desperate to get through to the warlord. "Using that power... you're endangering our entire world!"

Starscream gazed at Megatron, Barricade and Brawl, but especially at Megatron. Suddenly, a series of images flashed by his optics, as brief as a second, but enough that he could remember them all. His Energon froze by the memory of the images.

Images of him getting attacked and brutalized by Megatron. Images of him getting threatened at gun point and knife point by the Autobots. Images of him getting a fusion cannon pointed at him by Megatron. Images of him getting laughed at by countless bots because he had failed. Images of a destroyed Cybertron.

Images of what was going to happen if he joined Megatron.

Without realizing it, Starscream had backed off almost all the way to the window, behind his three Air Commanders. Slipstream's idea of hiding in the corner didn't seem so stupid now. Starscream wished he had done the same sooner. He wished he had just left when he announced it. He wished he had just forced the others to go out.

Now, there was no escape.

At least, no escape for everyone.

Jetfire tried to reason with Megatron, but the warlord merely stared coldly at Starscream, who stared back, not coldly, but in fear. Fear of what this mighty mech could do. Of what he would do. There was no point trying to fight this mech. There was no point trying to persuade him into taking him in.

There was no point fighting anymore.

After several seconds of hesitation, Starscream made his decision.

He transformed to jet mode, drawing everyone's attention.

He turned tail and shot his way out through the window.

He accelerated to full speed toward Cybertron, leaving his allies and enemies behind.

He didn't even look back to see Jetfire, Thundercracker and Skywarp's shocked expressions as they realized they had just been abandoned and betrayed by their leader.

A leader who was too cowardly to face danger anymore.

 _I've had enough of this war,_ Starscream thought distressed, not even daring to look back to see if he was being followed. _I quit._


	2. Deserter

The Seekers stared speechlessly at the window, at the spot where Starscream had just stood. They couldn't believe their own optics.

"He left us...?" Skywarp said in disbelief. "That jerk..."

"The coward ran away," Barricade commented in amusement. "What a surprise."

The Seekers turned away from the window and returned their focus to the three Decepticons in front of them.

"How pathetic," Megatron said. "I pity you for having had such a strutless coward for a leader."

Jetfire gave Megatron a sternful glare. "Starscream may have abandoned us, but we're not letting you have this station," Jetfire declared bravely. "We will gladly sacrifice ourselves to prevent you from getting control of the Dark Energon."

"We will?" Skywarp said lowly.

"Uh... maybe?" Thundercracker said in uncertainty.

Megatron took a few looming steps forward, making Thundercracker and Skywarp take a step back, but Jetfire was steadfast.

"Perhaps your leader was wise to flee when he had the chance," Megatron said ominously. "He knew who he was dealing with and escaped with his life. You lot are not so lucky."

"It's three against three," Jetfire protested. "We can take you on!"

"You have just witnessed the three of us take out all your forces," Megatron pointed out. "And you believe the mere three of you can stand against _me_?"

"And us!" Barricade added in. "We're here too, Megatron!"

"Quiet, Barricade," Megatron snarled. "Surrender now, Seekers, and I shall spare your lives."

"We will never surrender to the likes of you, Megatron!" Jetfire protested. Thundercracker and Skywarp remained silent.

"Then I shall simply take your Sparks," Megatron replied calmly. "And then I will have this station and its supply of Dark Energon."

"Tough luck," a voice sounded from the corner, making everyone look over. From the darkness of the corner emerged the purple form of Slipstream, having cloaked herself to hide from the attackers. For some reason, she now found it appropriate to reveal herself. "You just used up the last of the Dark Energon we had stored on this station."

"What?!" Megatron replied in disbelief. "You are lying."

"Nah, I'm not really the type to lie," Slipstream replied, strangely calm for someone who had just been hiding. "We've kept small stocks in supply since the explosion that happened centuries ago. I'm sure you've seen the damage Dark Energon can do."

Slipstream calmly stepped forward and joined her fellow Seekers, gaining a confused look from Jetfire.

"So you are saying there is no more Dark Energon?" Megatron asked, equally calm but deadly serious. "I find that hard to believe."

"It _is_ possible to manufacture more," Slipstream admitted. "But sadly for you, Starscream was one of the only who knew how to do it."

Megatron glared at the Seekers, clearly unamused, certainly ready to blast them all to pieces. Slipstream was quick to continue. Her mouth contorted into a smirk.

"Lucky for you, I happen to be one of them as well," Slipstream said with a silky voice.

Jetfire stared at her in disbelief. "Slipstream, what are you-"

"There was once an Energon bridge that fed this station directly," Slipstream continued, ignoring Jetfire. "I have studied under Starscream and know how to reconnect it."

"And what is it that you wish in return, _Slipstream_?" Megatron asked intrigued.

Slipstream placed a hand on her chest. "Merely that you will teach me how to control Dark Energon like you do," Slipstream said, "and I will serve you."

"Traitor!" Jetfire shouted and stepped back, taking the other Seekers by surprise. "Zeta Prime will hear about this!"

Jetfire reverted to jet mode and shot out through the window. Thundercracker and Skywarp started shooting after Jetfire as he left the station, making their opinions clear. Slipstream smirked gleefully.

"Looks like I just became the new Sky Commander around here," she said with the hint of a chuckle. "Shall I send Thundercracker and Skywarp to retrieve the cowards, _Lord_ Megatron?"

"No," Megatron replied and approached the other window, which had a clear view of Cybertron. "I want the Autobots' leader to know his doom approaches. Once we have this station online, nothing can stop me! And as for Starscream, he can get eaten by Scraplets for all I care. Now go. Find this Energon bridge. And reactivate it... for your _new_ master."

Slipstream smirked in satisfaction, as she, Thundercracker and Skywarp reverted to their jet modes and left the conference room through the window, heading for Cybertron, to find the Geosynchronous Energon Bridge. To confirm their allegience, the Decepticon insignia appeared spontaneously on their wings, and the purple symbol changed their yellow bio-lights to purple.

 _My time has finally come,_ Slipstream thought gleefully. _Commander Slipstream has arisen!_

* * *

Starscream didn't stop flying. He didn't look back. He just continued flying as fast as he could, past the few Seekers that survived the invasion, past the remaining Decepticon ships, past whatever Autobot ships or Fliers he encountered, all on his way to Cybertron. He did not stop until he had found the ruins of a city which was mostly devoid of life. He descended into it, reverted to bot mode and planted his feet on the ground, in the middle of a street. He vented deeply, his Spark racing fast.

"What just happened?" he gasped to himself. "What did I just see? Was that... a vision? Did I see the future? No, impossible, it isn't possible to see into the future, not unless you're a Prime, I suppose. But then why did I get such a feeling of foreboding...?"

Starscream grasped his head, still trying to process what he had just done.

"I left them," he hissed. "I got scared and ran off. Why?"

When Megatron had entered the conference room, Starscream had briefly considered asking to join the Decepticons, intrigued by Megatron's ability to control the Dark Energon and his extraordinary power. But just as he had been about to say something, those odd, ominous images of him suffering in numerous ways had gotten him on different thoughts. He didn't know if he had really seen the future, or a possible future, but it had given him a bad feeling, a feeling he could not ignore. And suddenly, his body had reacted on its own, getting him away from the danger before his mind could start working again.

"Now what?" Starscream asked himself, letting his arms fall to his sides and looked around. "I can't go back. I outright refused to join the Decepticons by running away. Megatron's gonna be _mad_ if I show my face again. And..." He gazed up, trying to make out the orbital space station in the dark, starry night sky. "I left the Seekers. I left Jetfire. They will definitely not be happy to see me again."

He gazed back at the ground in thought. "I could tell them I just went for a fly... no, that's stupid, they'd never believe something so random and simple, an obvious lie. Perhaps I should go seek out the Autobots, warn them of Megatron's siege of the station, ask them to take me in..."

" _Down there! One of them survived!_ " a voice shouted from above.

" _Take him down!_ " another voice yelled.

Starscream looked up as a pair of jets started shooting at him from above. He yelped in surprise and jumped from side to side to avoid the lasers, after which he reverted back to jet mode himself and took off.

"What the frag!" he shrieked as he tried to get away from his unknown attackers. "Decepticons! How did they know where I was? Did they follow me? Is Megatron so mad that I left that he decided to hunt me down?"

More lasers were shot after him, but he barely had to make an effort to dodge the shots.

"Whoever they are, they are no Seekers," he mused. "Their aim is poor. They are no threat."

At one point though, one of the lasers brushed one of Starscream's wings, causing him to yelp in surprise.

"But they are _annoying_!" he hissed. "That's it, I've had enough of you two!"

In a quick movement, Starscream made a loop and arrived behind his two attackers. Before they could react, Starscream started firing at them and managed to break off the wings of one and blew the thrusters on the other. Both were sent crashing to the ground while screaming. They didn't revert to bot mode in time and went offline as soon as the explosion from the impact with the ground sounded.

"You dare stand against _Starscream_?" Starscream snarled as he descended to the ground. "You will regret ever crossing me, Decepticons!"

He reverted to bot mode before landing on the ground. He went over to inspect the bodies before him. He stiffened as he looked at the battered, crisp jets.

Their wings did not sport any purple brands. Instead there were red symbols on their frames. Autobot insignias.

His attackers had been Autobots. Starscream couldn't believe it.

" _Autobots_ attacked me?" he said and stepped back in disbelief. "Why? I'm not even a Decepticon. I wasn't even attacking them. They didn't even check who I was before attacking."

Starscream stared up at the sky and activated his jet boosters. He went above the ruins and gazed across the horizon. In the far distance, he could just make out the smoldering buildings of a city, lights blinking above from gunfire, lasers and explosions. Every city was a battlefield now, except for the ones that were mere ruins, like this one. He would not be safe in any city. And from the looks of it, the Autobots had no intention of taking him in either.

"Everyone is against me," Starscream deduced anxiously. "I can't trust the Decepticons, the Seekers won't have me, and the Autobots are blind trigger-happy idiots."

Starscream looked back in the direction of Trypticon Station. "If the Seekers haven't been vaporized by now, they must have joined Megatron's forces," he mused. "And considering how many there are and how much we all look alike, I will most certainly be seen as a Decepticon from now on. I must stay away from the battlefield."

Starscream reverted to jet mode and took off in the opposite direction of the far-off city. He didn't know where he was going or what he was going to do now. If neither the Autobots, the Decepticons nor the Energon Seekers would take him in - the last because he was certain the Energon Seekers no longer existed - he had no allies and no place to stay in. He would have to find his own place and survive on his own.

"Can't be that hard," Starscream mused as he flew over the wilder areas of Cybertron. "I'm a flight frame, I can easily find Energon and whatever else I need. And I'm a strong, independent Seeker, I can handle any enemy I come across. It will be no trouble."

The first step was to find Energon. It had been a while since he had last refueled, and given the recent events, he really needed to get some fuel.

In cities, space ships and orbital space stations, Energon cubes could be found scattered across the areas, some in small stocks to be hidden away from the enemy while others had simply been dropped in the hurry of getting them hidden. It was too risky trying his luck in a city though, as those were either battlefields or empty ruins. There were Energon deposits around the globe, but raw Energon was extremely volatile and dangerous. Not to mention that the deposits in the cities and in underground caverns near the core and under the cities were contaminated by industrial waste and warfare. This Energon was a sickly mix of cyan, dark blue and black, and it was so dangerous that even touching it would cause heavy damage to a bot. If this Energon was to be mixed with Dark Energon, bots would die within seconds of contact.

Crude Energon could not be used as fuel until it had been refined and purified. Therefore, despite the large deposits of it under and around the cities, it wasn't used much. It took time to refine Energon, and because of the war, not many had the time to purify this Energon to be used as fuel. Clean raw Energon was becoming a rare thing these days. But perhaps it still existed somewhere?

Eventually, Starscream spotted something interesting below him: a forest. He felt his Spark leap at the sight. Where there were metalo-plants, there was Energon.

Starscream descended to the forest and reverted to bot mode. He took a look around. It seemed to be a cobalt-pine forest.

"There must be Energon here somewhere," Starscream mused. "But if I couldn't see it from above, it might not be a lot. But certainly enough to support this well-sized forest."

After having walked for about ten minutes in the dark blue forest without encountering anything but a petro-rabbit and a lilleth or two, he spotted something glowing. He felt a rush in his tanks and followed the light. A few minutes later, he found what he had been looking for: an Energon pond. It was small with some rhodium-reed surrounding it and probably didn't house more than a few robo-minnow and amphiboids, if any at all. But the Energon in it was bright and solid cyan, unlike the kind seen in the cities.

"It looks just like refined Energon," Starscream said breathlessly at the sight of the pond.

He walked over to the pond and knelt down. It _looked_ clean, but was it really safe to drink? He held his right hand over the surface in hesitation. He slowly, carefully dipped his fingers in the Energon. He let out a sigh of relief as he felt no pain, instead only the cold feel of the element.

Having confirmed it was safe to touch, Starscream used the same hand to scoop up a little Energon and brought it to his mouth. He took a sip. He sighed.

"Pure Energon," he whispered. "It's so clean, I already feel more refreshed."

Using another hand, Starscream shaped his hands into a cup and scooped up more Energon to drink, while sitting on both knees. The cold Energon rushing down his systems brought relief to his warm interior, and he felt himself getting stronger as his tanks slowly began to fill up.

A rattle brought Starscream out of his trance. He opened his optics wide and looked up. He felt a rush in his tanks as a large Insecticon stood right in front of him, on the other side of the pond. He rose to his feet immediately and stared intently at the Insecticon, which stared back at him.

"What are you looking at, you big brute?" Starscream hissed at the Insecticon. "I found this place first! This is _my_ Energon, go away!"

The Insecticon rattled louder at his statement. It let out a shrill roar to scare him. Starscream was not impressed. The pond was only a few mechanometers in diameter, so there really wasn't a lot of Energon available here. Yet apparently still enough to support a forest of about half a klik in diameter and more than a few species of mechanimals in it. It didn't seem like a place for an Insecticon to live in though; Insecticons were native to large jungles and rainforests with rivers and large lakes, not a measly pine forest like this one with one tiny pond in it. A single Insecticon like this one could easily consume half of this entire pond's worth of Energon in one sitting, or at least a third of it. And Insecticons were rarely alone; this one could simply be a scout.

Starscream drew forth the two yellow Energon swords he had on his back and took a battle stance. He was not going to give up this Energon without a fight.

"Bring it on, Insecticon!" he challenged.

The Insecticon roared and jumped over the pond, aiming for Starscream. Starscream leapt back to avoid getting pounded by the Insecticon, and swung with one of his swords. The Insecticon got cut on the left arm, but the wound barely leaked. The hit only made it madder, and with another shrill roar it charged at him.

Starscream jumped to the side just in time as the Insecticon swung its claws at him, and avoided a swipe. He swung both swords at the other's shoulder, creating a deep wound that started leaking. The Insecticon shrieked and jumped back. It spread its claws to the sides and charged him again, this time blocking him from the right and left. But not from above.

Starscream leapt into the air as the Insecticon swung out after him. He lifted his swords and aimed for the head.

But as he struck, the Insecticon unexpectantly grabbed both swords in one hand in a quick movement. With the other hand, it grabbed his leg and wrist the swords out of his hands. Starscream cringed as the swords landed several mechanometers away and the Insecticon began slamming him against the ground with a firm grip on his leg. Starscream tried to aim his null-rays at the beast, but the swings were too fast and forceful to get an aim. He tried activating his thrusters in its face, but again he couldn't get an aim. And getting slammed against the hard metal ground was really taking it out of him.

At one point, when the Insecticon lifted him into the air to slam him on the ground again, Starscream launched forward and grabbed its head. To his disappointment, the Insecticon stopped its attacks; he had intended to trick the beast into ripping its own head off, but it appeared to be smarter than that. Instead, it lifted him up higher by the leg, while he was still holding onto its head. He stiffened as he saw its other arm reach back, preparing for an attack.

Before he could let go of the head, the Insecticon slashed him right on the chest, after which it threw him onto the ground, finally letting go of his leg. Starscream howled in pain and covered the three long, deep claw marks that ran across his chest, down his cockpit and reaching his abdominal plates.

Starscream got to his knees and stared up at the large, looming Insecticon, its claws stained with his Energon. It was barely injured itself and was probably not alone. He couldn't win this fight.

Spotting his swords a few mechanometers away, Starscream rose quickly to his legs and ran over to get them. The Insecticon charged again, but instead of retaliating, Starscream simply put the swords on his back and took a few steps before reverting to jet mode. He took off into the sky, shooting his way out through the cobalt trees, escaping from the Insecticon. He didn't need to look back to know that it wasn't following him. It had won the fight, and now it could claim its prize: the Energon of this forest.

Starscream felt hurt on his pride as he flew off across the sky, heading back toward the city ruins he had landed in earlier. It was as abandoned as he had first found it, and it didn't seem like there were any patrols nearby like last time. He transformed and landed in the street, but sought cover among the rubble of a former building just in case. He sat down to rest for a moment, all while clutching his wounded chest.

"I lost the Energon," he hissed in shame. "Not only that, but I got hurt so bad in that fight, and I even had to admit defeat. This is the worst day of my life."

And to make matters worse, because of the wartime, it would be extremely hard, if not impossible, to find any medical supplies, not to mention a doctor that would treat him. He had to figure this out by himself.

"There must be supplies in these ruins somewhere," he muttered and got up, still covering his wounds the best he could. He had to stop the leaking, and if possible he also had to find something to wrap them up in so he wouldn't get an infection. The metal beneath the wound could rust, or he could catch foreign metal ions or parasites in his Energon to contaminate his systems and make him sick. Had he had access to a doctor, such a thing wouldn't be of any concern. Now, even a small leaking wound could mean the death of him if he did not treat it.

"I can't afford to get hurt now," Starscream mused as he struggled to rummage through the rubble of the city ruins. "I must be more careful from now on. _If_ there is a 'now on'. There must be _some_ thing..."

He searched for hours, ransacking the entire city, but couldn't find anything remotely resembling medical supplies. Not even a bandage.

"Please, please, come on," Starscream begged the rubble. "Just give me _something_ I can use! _Any_ thing!"

He was about to give up his search when he saw something flat sticking up from among the rubble. He dug it out and found that it was a long metal sheet.

"Not exactly medical material, but I suppose it'll have to do," Starscream said and got it all the way out. "Can't afford to be picky now."

It was just long enough that he could bend it so it went all the way around his body. It wasn't soft like an actual bandage, so it took some force to shape it enough that it would stick to his body and cover the wounds enough that it would stop the leaking. He didn't have a blowtorch or anything to seal it together with, but it was shaped enough that it would stay where it was without falling down. As long as he didn't transform or move his body in too complicated positions, it would hold.

"Barely got enough Energon from that little sip," Starscream grumbled as he made his way through the ruins. "And now I've probably lost more than I drank. Damn Insecticon..."

He couldn't go look for more Energon now though. He wasn't in condition for another fight, and even with his jet boosters he wouldn't be able to fly very far. The boosters in his legs consumed much more energy than his jet mode did while flying, and as he was depleted of Energon at the moment, he couldn't afford to waste his energy on bot mode flight. He had to rest for a while, give his body time to heal his wounds so he could go look for more Energon later.

It was hard to find anything that could be used as a shelter, but eventually Starscream found a somewhat stable structure of a former building, with something of a roof over it. It would probably shield him from weather if that should happen. And there was a pair of walls to somewhat conceal him from possible enemies. It would have to do for now.

Starscream went into the shelter and carefully laid down, trying not to bend too much, and laid flat on his back, flattening his wings behind him. It wasn't the most comfortable sleeping position for a flight frame, but it was more important to spare his wounds than avoid getting a crick in his wings. He placed his hands on his chest and stared into the sky, focusing on the two moons among the countless stars. For a while he just laid there and stared ahead, not thinking about anything.

Then, after about an hour of just staring silently at the sky, he closed his optics and slowly fell into recharge.


	3. Mechanimals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, but hopefully interesting.  
> I just recently came up with the idea of metalo-fruits and meshetables and wanted to explore Cybertronian nature a bit deeper.  
> Some of these chapters are gonna be somewhat "educational", I guess you can say XD  
> Hope you enjoy. :)

When Starscream woke up again, the sun had risen on the sky. He felt a little better, rested, though his wings were incredibly sore from being forced in the same position for several hours. He carefully sat up, leaning on his hands behind him. His wounds didn't hurt anymore, at least nothing too bothersome. Maybe a bit itchy, but nothing miserable.

Using the nearest wall for support, Starscream slowly and carefully got onto his feet. He carefully undid his work with the metal sheet around his torso, slowly pulling it off his frame just in case it hadn't healed. As he removed the sheet, he saw to his relief that the three large wounds had stopped leaking and had more or less closed, though the scars remained and could probably still open with little force. He still had to be careful.

Despite having rested and his wounds having healed the worst, he was still a bit low on Energon and would have to go fuel on more. He threw the used metal sheet away and waited a couple of seconds before initiating jet mode. Despite the sudden movements, he felt no pain or wounds opening, so he felt himself inclined to take off into the sky to search for Energon.

He decided to ignore the cobalt forest he had been in the previous day. It was uncertain whether the Insecticon - and its possible fellows - was still there, but in any case it was too risky to settle down in an area with so little Energon. The less Energon there was, the greater the competition would be for it, Starscream imagined. Even among the mechanimals.

After having flown for a little over half an hour, Starscream eventually found a different forest, and this time he could clearly see Energon from the sky, in the form of a river. He descended and reverted to bot mode, landing near the river but still having to walk for a few minutes before reaching it.

This Energon river was a few mechanometers wide and stretched throughout the forest, which seemed to be made up mostly of osmium-oaks. The Energon in it seemed as bright and cyan as the pond in the cobalt-pine forest.

Just to be safe, Starscream knelt down and tested the Energon's quality by dipping his fingers in it. It felt as harmless and cool as the other Energon he had found. He settled down on both knees and started sipping the Energon with his cupped hands.

This time Starscream managed to fuel for several minutes without getting in a conflict with any other thirsty mechanimals. Because of the river's size and length, the risk of encountering others was smaller than at the single, tiny pond. Despite this, Starscream did see, on the other side of the river, a few mechanimals emerge from the forest to quench their thirst on occasion. Nothing bigger than himself though, just a pair of petro-rabbits, a few lilleths and even a dioptas-deer. They came, they drank their fill, and then they left again. Starscream would pause in his own fueling to just watch them for a while, not used to being so close to wild mechanimals.

At one point, a turbofox emerged from right across the river, right in front of him. Again Starscream paused in his consumption and stared cautiously at the turbofox in front of him, a few mechanometers away. The turbofox stared right back at him with its glowing red eyes. Its spiky mane stood a bit to the sides and its ears perked in attention.

They both stared intently at each other, unsure if the other was a threat or not. The turbofox was smaller than him, but they were among the fastest of mechanimals on Cybertron, and had a reputation of being extremely vicious and no intelligence whatsoever. Even lone turbofoxes could easily rip apart a lone Cybertronian like Starscream, and fast.

After about a minute of staring each other down, the turbofox slowly and carefully lowered its head and began lapping at the Energon, but kept its gaze at Starscream from across the river. Starscream hesitantly returned his hands to the Energon to scoop up more to drink, slowly, also while keeping his gaze on the turbofox.

Despite the tense stares, both continued to fuel in relative peace and quiet. Once the turbofox seemed to have had its fill of Energon, it turned tail and raced off, almost as quick as it had appeared. Starscream relaxed his frame as it disappeared. It seemed the turbofox' reputation of being mindless killers wasn't completely deserved after all.

He took a few more sips before deciding he was full and reverted to jet mode, taking off into the sky and leaving the forest. For future reference, he marked the forest's location in his processor, as it seemed it wasn't going to run out of Energon anytime soon. There also didn't seem to be any Insecticons nearby, which was promising.

Having refueled, Starscream wondered what he should do now. "Perhaps there's something in the city that I missed?" he mused and decided to return to the ruins he had previously been in.

He had already ransacked the entire city, but that had simply been to search for medical supplies. Now that he had rested, recovered and refueled, he could go search for other things, random things, just something that he could occupy himself with for the rest of the day. Not having any friends or allies and not participating in the war, there wasn't much to do, after all. Maybe he could find some sort of hobby, if anything was available.

As he arrived in the ruins, he began searching through the rubble again, this time with more patience and focus on what he found. Most of what he found were dead bodies, both of Autobots, Decepticons and Neutrals. No one was spared in the war. He even saw remains of domesticated mechanimals here and there.

Other things he found were broken or used weapons, like empty guns or brittle vibro-blades. He wasn't very interested in the weapons, as he already had two fine Energon swords on his back and a pair of null-ray guns tucked in his arms. He had what he needed to defend himself.

He also found datapads, most of them broken, some seemed intact but were glitchy and malfunctioning. A few were intact both in looks and in function. He found a picture book for Newsparks, a history book, an atlas and a biology book among others. Another intact datapad he found just so happened to be a medical book. He decided to keep that one, but also decided to take a look at the others later.

He took the functional datapads and made his way to the shelter he had used earlier and settled down to read. He decided to take a look at the medical book first, since that seemed to be something he needed to know about the most, considering his condition. He knew the basics, of course, but hadn't really studied medicine in the millions of years he had lived in. It seemed like a good idea to learn a bit more about it now.

"Let's see..." he muttered as he flipped through the pages on the screen. "How to take care of wounds... here. 'Stop the leaking.' Check. 'Disinfect it.' That's not gonna happen. What else... how to make the wounds go away. 'Consume plenty of Energon, supplement with metals.' Well, got the first one down. What kind of metals, though? 'Precious metals are good for the immune system and to prevent oxidation, here among rust. Strong metals are good for building up the frame and for filling in the wounds. A good source of precious metals are metalo-fruits, while strong metals can be found plentiful in meshetables. These also contain a good quantity of Energon and as such are healthy and nutritious when combined.' Hmm, alright then. Never really been a fan of consuming metalo-plants, but I guess I can't be picky these days."

Another source of metal was mechanimals, but Starscream wasn't a fan of that practice either. Cybertronians normally only consumed Energon, only really eating metals if sick, wounded or being growing Sparklings, or in rare cases if a bot was sparked and thus needed to help build up the growing Protoform's frame. Starscream could see the sense in consuming more metals though, as Cybertronians were made up of various kinds of metals, their toughness varying upon what metals they fed themselves with. Mainly they were made of living metal, Sentio Metallico, which shaped their bodies in a certain form, allowed them to change according to new alternate modes, change their paintjobs and heal wounds gained in battle.

Bots that fueled solely on Energon tended to have weaker armor than ones that also consumed metal, and those that consumed only precious metals had weaker armor than those that fed on strong metals like titanium and chromium. Thick, strong armor was a sign of a good, well-balanced diet of lots of strong metals, while armor that was resistant to rust was a result of a diet of precious metals like gold, silver, copper, platinum and the like. These metals were also soft, however, and made the armor more brittle and easier to break. Strong metals also improved the strength of a bot's dentas to more easily chew through these hard metals.

"Alright, now where do I find these things?" Starscream muttered to himself. It didn't seem like the medical book would tell him that. He put it down and opened the biology datapad instead and began flipping through the pages. "Let's see... 'Common metalo-fruits are golden apples, copperanges, lithium-lemons and magnesium-melons, which contain a large quantity of Energon.' Hmm, yes, metalo-fruits are pretty weak in metal, but they're not all precious metals, I see... 'Meshetables rich in strong metals include chromium-carrots, broccoliron, titanimatoes and tungsten-beets.' Urgh, those don't sound very tasty. But anyway, where do I find them?"

Starscream sat and read the various pages, chapters and books for a few hours, learning about the benefits of consuming metals and where to find metalo-fruits and meshetables. Apparently they grew wherever Energon existed. Also in the biology book was a bit of information regarding the cycle of Energon.

Energon existed naturally as crystals or in liquid form, but during hot days the liquid could heat up and evaporate in small amounts to form clouds. These clouds would eventually condensate to rain and gather in puddles elsewhere. It took a great deal of time and a specific temperature and climate for liquid Energon to crystallize on Cybertron, though on alien worlds where Energon also existed, it occured more often as crystals as the temperature and climate were often just right for the solid form of this element.

When Energon came in contact with too high temperatures, it would explode and sublimate directly into large clouds to later condensate again into rain and gather in puddles somewhere. On Cybertron, it could take some weeks for Energon in the right climate to crystallize, but on alien worlds it could take several years to do the same, and even condensation could take hours or days. When consumed by bots, the Energon would leave their systems mostly through venting or as ammo, as well as being used for recovering from wounds and in rare cases illness. Because of this long cycle, Energon was often scarce as crystals or even as purified liquid like the kind Starscream had found in forests. Which was the reason why there was such tight competition for Energon wherever Cybertronians went, be it Cybertron, space or alien worlds.

Having read a bit biology, Starscream decided to put it down and look at the atlas datapad instead, trying to figure out if he could determine where on Cybertron he might find metalo-fruits and meshetables. It might not be that easy to find on an atlas, but he had to use whatever help he could get now. The atlas wasn't much help though, it didn't have any symbols for fruit trees or meshetable fields. It did have some coloration for certain forests and other natural environments though, but most of Cybertron was covered by cities, as well as the Sea of Rust and the Mithril Sea. There wasn't a lot of nature left on the metal world.

Starscream put down the datapad among the others. He wasn't interested in looking at pictures or reading history at the moment. Instead, he got up and decided to mark the location of the shelter - since he apparently seemed keen on returning to this place every so often, even though he didn't even know what city this used to be - before he reverted to jet mode and took off into the sky. He decided to do some exploration of Cybertron, or at least of its nature.

He decided to return to the osmium-oak forest with the Energon river in it, just to see what else it might have to offer. Also because he wanted to know if any dangerous creatures lived in it - after all, Insecticons weren't the only dangerous beasts on Cybertron. Energon rivers and lakes could sometime host alloygators, and forests such as this one could possibly have krystar iron-bears or titanium moosebots. Starscream wanted to know if the forest was safe enough to come for Energon every day or if he had to watch his back. More than he had to watch his back already anyway.

Natural forests also had a variety of metalo-plants, here among fruit trees on occasion. Most of these trees seemed to be osmium-oaks, but since most metal was gray, it was difficult to tell which plants were made of what. The easiest way to tell the species apart was by looking at the leaves, as they tended to be different shapes according to species. As Starscream walked among the trees, he noticed a few of them seemed to be manganese-maples and vanadium-birches. He also recognized at least two as being boron-beeches, with all the spiny empty nut shells lying around it, having been eaten by dexi-squirrels and what not.

"I wonder if this place has anything _I_ can eat?" he mused to himself as he studied the metalo-plants.

Eventually he arrived at a small glade in which he found what seemed to be a fruit tree. He studied the shape of the fruits and the form the leaves had. It seemed to be a platinum-pear tree. Platinum was a good precious metal for the immune system and had plenty of antioxidants and Energon, Starscream remembered from the biology book. This was a good find.

"Alright, let's see what you got," Starscream said to the tree as he approached it and reached a hand up to pluck a pear from one of the lowest branches. He studied the fruit and squeezed it a bit to test its hardness. It was firm though could probably easily be cut through.

He took a small bite of the fruit, his dentas easily cutting through the mesh despite being rather flat. It was sweet and juicy thanks to its content of Energon. Not too hard to chew, but not too soft either.

"Not bad," Starscream judged after having swallowed the bite. "I could live with this."

He decided to pluck more fruits for future consumption. He used his jet boosters to hover up to the crown where more pears were hanging. He plucked six extra pears and tucked them in his cockpit, while keeping the first one between his dentas. Metalo-fruits and meshetables could rust and go bad after plucking, unless sustained with Energon, so their duration would last longer. Metalo-fruits made of precious metals like gold or platinum had longer duration due to the high quality of the metal, whereas fruits made of magnesium or lithium among others wouldn't last more than a few days before rusting. These platinum-pears could go several weeks before going bad, so Starscream wasn't worried.

After having plucked a reasonable amount of pears, Starscream deactivated his thrusters and returned to the ground and walked on. He marked the tree's location in his processor for future reference. There seemed to be plenty of pears on it, even after his little harvest. It could be useful later.

While walking through the forest, Starscream continued eating the first pear, making sure to eat around the core. While metalo-fruits were good for a bot's health, he had read in the biology book that the seeds should be avoided. They weren't toxic, but some metalo-seeds tended to not get digested in the tanks, instead absorbing the bot's Energon and the metal of said bot's frame. Some seeds would sprout inside a bot's body and eventually grow so big that it could kill its host. It was one of the reasons why metalo-fruits, despite their health benefits, were largely avoided by the Cybertronian population. But Starscream knew better now. As long as he avoided the seeds, his body could make great use of the metals the fruits had to offer him.

But while platinum was a good metal for his internal systems, it wasn't as good for his armor. If his wounds were to fill in, and to avoid his armor becoming brittle, he would also have to consume some strong metals. Which meant he had to look for meshetables. They were a bit more difficult to find than metalo-fruits. Metalo-fruits could be found on trees or bushes with relative ease. Meshetables, however, tended to be leaves, roots, stems and bark among others, and it was only some species of metalo-plants where one could eat these things. There were a few metalo-fruits that were called meshetables, however, because they were made of strong metals, such as titanimatoes. Among scientists and botanists, there was often heavy debate whether a titanimato was a metalo-fruit or a meshetable. Starscream didn't care. As long as it was made of titanium, he would take it if he could find it.

Starscream searched around the forest, examining the roots, leaves, bark and stems of the trees and bushes he found. Nothing seemed to be especially strong and edible. While osmium was a hard metal, it was also brittle and generally not edible by Cybertronians, so he ignored the osmium trees. Chromium was the strongest and hardest metal in the natural world and thus the best metal for armor growth and improvement. But there didn't seem to be any chromium in this forest.

Starscream finished his platinum-pear and threw the untouched core into the bushes. He continued walking until he reached another glade and paused. In the glade was a group of petro-rabbits gathered, peacefully nipping at the metal grass sticking up from the ground. Starscream hid himself behind a tree and just watched them for a while. Those small shiny bodies, the long ears and the large glossy optics, and that way they sat on their hind legs and chewed on the grass in quick movements.

 _They're kind of cute, I guess,_ Starscream thought. _I can see the appeal in keeping them as pets. I wouldn't want one myself though._

Something caught his attention, and he looked up. In the shadows of the trees behind the petro-rabbits, Starscream could just make out a pair of familiar red eyes. Before he could think further about it, a turbofox leapt out from the trees and caused the petro-rabbits to scatter in panic. Within barely two seconds, before Starscream could even process what just happened, the turbofox had downed one of the petro-rabbits and bit down hard on its throat until it went limp. Starscream remained silent during the dramatic scene unfolding before him. The other petro-rabbits had disappeared from the glade.

The turbofox crouched down and started tearing off pieces of mesh of the petro-rabbit, chomping on it and swallowing the soft metal. Starscream watched its movements with fascination. Petro-rabbits ate metalo-plants, which were made of different metals and Energon and absorbed energy from the sun. The petro-rabbits thus built up their frames with these metals, as mechanimals were also made of living metal and adapted to their diet. The turbofox in turn ate the petro-rabbit and thus consumed the metals the petro-rabbit had absorbed, thus building up its own frame. When the turbofox died, its remains would eventually get absorbed by the metalo-plants surrounding it and return to the soil it came from. Life depended on other life to survive.

 _Every living thing is connected,_ Starscream thought in realization. _It's a circle of life._

After having taken a few bites of the petro-rabbit, the turbofox lifted its head and looked in the direction from which it came. It started yapping, which almost sounded like barking. Starscream gazed ahead and held back a gasp as he saw three smaller turbofoxes emerge from the shadows of the trees, yapping and jumping around playfully. Starscream had never seen turbofox kits before, but then again, no one probably had. The life of a turbofox was mysterious and secretive, as was almost every other mechanimal's life on Cybertron. Cybertronians usually stayed in the cities and thus didn't know much about the wildlife on their own planet.

It was only really the scientists and explorers who bothered go out and study these creatures, and more often than not they didn't do it very thoroughly, as they tended to study only a couple of specimens and at short amounts of time, thus coming with very limited descriptions of the mechanimals. Turbofoxes, for example, were known for having no intelligence and being extremely vicious killing machines.

Starscream knew differently now. He watched as the three kits joyfully jumped around their parent, two of them digging into the petro-rabbit as the parent sat up, the last kit more interested in playing with its parent. The adult turbofox licked the playful kit on its long ears and its spiny mane which stood to all sides.

Starscream couldn't help but smile at the scene. Despite the drama before, it was a strangely engrossing scene, especially seeing this vicious mechanimal acting so tenderly and affectionate towards its young. Two were hungry and greedy while the third was more playful, a clear sign of different personalities. And the parent was so patient with the lively kit. Their description of having no intelligence seemed to have been a clear misinterpretation of their species. Starscream wondered how much he could actually trust those biology books now, seeing what turbofoxes were actually like right here and now.

Starscream took a step back for a better stand, but his leg accidentally touched a bush and made it rustle. The turbofox parent shot its head in his direction and got up on all four and started growling. The three kits ceased their eating and playing and sought cover behind the adult. Starscream swore internally. The turbofox had spotted him and stared deeply into his optics with a hateful glare, baring its many sharp teeth and emitting a deep growl.

At any other time, Starscream would probably have retaliated and attack it, maybe even kill it. But this time was different. He knew the turbofox was just trying to protect its young and prey. And already being wounded, he had no desire to engage an angry turbofox in a fight, as that would with certainty give him even more wounds and could probably even kill him in his current condition. So instead, Starscream backed off a bit before initiating jet mode and shot out through the trees, setting off into the sky and left the forest. At least turbofoxes couldn't fly. It was about the only advantage he had over it.

Having left the forest, Starscream headed back toward the city where he had made his own little living space by now. As he flew, he thought about his encounter with the turbofoxes and the petro-rabbits and the circle of life. In the past, before the fall of Trypticon Station, he had been like every other Cybertronian, a resident of the cities and space stations, fueling on Energon and going about his business without a care for where the Energon came from or how it played a part in the eco-system of Cybertron.

Now, after having left Trypticon Station, the war and the comfort of civilization, he was nothing more than another living being trying to survive with the world against him. Just trying to get Energon where he could find it, trying to stay out of trouble to avoid getting hurt and jeopardize his health, trying to survive in this cruel yet beautiful world.

"I'm just another mechanimal now," Starscream said in realization as he touched down in the ruins and reverted back to bot mode. "We are all mechanimals. We just don't know it. We are all part of the circle of life. It's just a matter of whether we can survive to see another day."


	4. Others Like Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Got the idea of a Scraplet-Trapper to explain why Cybertron isn't always crawling with pests.

Over the course of the next week, Starscream was slowly beginning to adapt to his new life in solitude away from the war. In the horizon, the flashes of gunfire and explosions continued in the far-off city, all while he searched through the city ruins for other items to keep himself busy with. Every day he went to the osmium forest to drink Energon, every day encountering a few mechanimals. Other than petro-rabbits and lilleths, he also saw dexi-squirrels, cyber-ducks and robotopossoms, as well as a single porcineacon once. He had been very still and tried to avoid eye contact when that one had appeared, as porcineacons were easily provoked, but like the other mechanimals, the boar disappeared as soon as it had taken its fill of Energon.

More often than not, Starscream also saw the small turbofox family make an appearance, mostly the lone parent, but after the first few encounters, it started to bring its kits along as well. The first few encounters, the turbofox had been wary and cautious of Starscream, but as their meetings became more frequent, it seemed to relax a bit more by his presence, as it learned he didn't intend to harm any of them. Starscream would always observe the turbofoxes whenever they appeared, especially as it appeared with its kits.

Starscream had quickly learned that as long as he let the mechanimals be, they would mostly leave him alone as well. He was glad to not have to get into a fight with every living thing he met, not to mention being able to consume Energon with other living beings without conflicts arising. The smaller, herbivorous mechanimals would sometimes drink from the river together side by side, but whenever the turbofoxes appeared, they and Starscream were the only present to drink. It seemed these predators were feared by other species as well, and rightfully so, considering what Starscream had seen of the hunting turbofox killing a petro-rabbit so easily.

This turbofox wasn't interested in getting into a fight with Starscream, having three kits to support and everything. Starscream, in turn, was even less interested in fighting not one, but four turbofoxes, even if three of them were youngsters. It was a strange truce they had at the river, a sort of harmonic place, a sanctuary where there was no fighting, but Energon for everyone. Kind of like Maccadam's, except without the host.

When he wasn't consuming Energon, Starscream was harvesting metalo-fruits and searching for meshetables. The day after finding the platinum-pear tree, he managed to find another forest in which there were tungsten-beets and, surprise, surprise, a cluster of titanimato plants wrapped around some of the tree trunks. He decided to pluck those as well as taking the beets. As he had expected, he didn't find either very tasteful, but they were edible nonetheless, so he decided to take them anyway and check later if he could do anything about the taste. Maybe eat them together with the platinum-pears, who knew, maybe it would improve the overall taste of them.

Despite his dislike for the meshetables, they worked the way they were supposed to; within a week's time of consuming Energon, metalo-fruits and meshetables, the wounds gained from his battle with the Insecticon were almost completely gone, all that was left were three white superficial lines across his chest.

When he wasn't harvesting metalo-fruits and meshetables, Starscream was exploring Cybertron and its various forests and other natural environments. He knew the natural world of Cybertron was decreasing, but he was surprised just how few forests he found while circling the globe. While steering clear of the cities at war, he could count about a dozen or so forests in total, most of them small. He saw a few deserts and plenty of wastelands, but what he saw most of were ruins of cities, as well as a few intact ones clear of the war. Other than that, there were only the Sea of Rust, the Mithril Sea and the Argon Sea, and there wasn't much life in those areas. The war wasn't just taking a toll on the Cybertronians, it was also deeply affecting the eco-system.

Then again, the nature of Cybertron had already been threatened before the war even started, considering how much forest and jungle had been cleared to make way for new cities and to expand cities already existing. Many species of mechanimals and metalo-plants had gone extinct because of it, and even more were endangered now. Even turbofoxes were starting to thin out, despite their vicious nature and incredible speed.

The only species that seemed to be thriving rather than decreasing were Insecticons and Scraplets. Both were predators and highly adaptable, and their natural enemy, the Scraplet-Trapper, existed mainly in jungles and rainforests, and was also close to extinction, thus the population of Scraplets and Insecticons were increasing.

Starscream had decided to give the picture book he found a try, and in it he found a picture of a Scraplet-Trapper. It was basically a giant metal flower which attracted Scraplets with a warm juicy bulb of living metal in the center of the flower, surrounded by large metal petals. The bulb emitted a sweet, delicious scent and appeared visually more attractive to a Scraplet than the petals did. When the Scraplets then latched onto the bulb, it would activate the petals, which closed around the Scraplets, trapping them in the flower. Afterwards, the temperature inside the flower would rise to such high degrees that it would melt the Scraplets, allowing the Scraplet-Trapper to absorb the metals and Energon the little creatures had fed on, and used it to grow bigger.

Small, young Scraplet-Trappers could only trap a few Scraplets inside. They could grow incredibly large, however, big enough to trap an entire Insecticon or two, as they were also attracted to the sweet scent of the metal bulb. As such, the Scraplet-Trappers made sure the population of Scraplets and Insecticons were kept in check. But because of the felling of the jungles and rainforests, where Scraplet-Trappers existed, the metalo-plants were getting damaged, withering and dying out. This was causing an unfortunate increase in the population of Insecticons and Scraplets on Cybertron. And both fed on metal and could survive without much Energon, which had an unfortunate consequence for the other mechanimals, which decreased in number.

Before he had become Sky Commander of the Seekers, Starscream had been a scientist and an explorer, working alongside his friend Jetfire. Together, they explored Cybertron and alien worlds, studied the plant life as well as some of the wildlife. But then Starscream found better payment in being a Seeker, and Jetfire joined the Energon Seekers alongside Starscream. They were still scientists, but as Starscream rose in the ranks, he slowly drifted away from his career as a scientist and in the end fully committed himself to the military field, as he assumed the position of Sky Commander. Despite not being a scientist anymore, he was still scientifically curious. Now that he wasn't participating in the war anymore, perhaps he should resume his former scientific endeavors?

In any case, it was interesting to learn things about the wild mechanimals that actual scientists didn't seem to have caught onto. Scientists were often paid handsomely, so most of these scientists had probably only done the research for the sake of Shanix, and not for the pursuit of actual knowledge, considering how half-sparked their research appeared to be.

A week after his desertion, Starscream once again found himself by the Energon river in the osmium forest, kneeling by the shore and sipping Energon from his cup-shaped hands. As usual, he saw a few mechanimals on the other side of the river; dexi-squirrels, petro-rabbits and lilleths. Eventually the turbofox appeared as well, as did its kits.

This time, though, something was different. Starscream paused his drinking as usual to study the turbofoxes, and blinked as he noticed only two of the kits were with the adult. Where was the third one? The lively one that always wanted to play while the other two just wanted to eat and drink? He looked around, spying the trees behind them to see if it was making a sneak attack, but it never came.

As he looked at the adult turbofox, he noticed how... mangled it seemed to be. It seemed to be wounded, with large scratches across its armor, some of it still leaking, as if it had just recently been attacked by something huge.

The two kits seemed unharmed, but the absence of the third kit and the wounded state the adult was in gave Starscream a strange feeling of foreboding and sadness. Had something attacked the family, the parent defending its young, but one of the kits having been taken? Had a tragedy taken place in the small turbofox family?

The turbofoxes didn't stay by the river as long as they usually did. Barely two minutes had passed before the parent ushered its two remaining kits back into the forest. Starscream stared at the empty spot for a minute or two before resuming his drinking.

Barely five minutes had passed before he heard a low growl and looked up again. His Spark skipped a beat and he felt adrenaline coursing through his body. In front of him, on the other side of the river, stood not turbofoxes, but a pair of gridwolves, large, looming and aggressive-looking.

Gridwolves were significantly larger than turbofoxes though they looked fairly similar to them. They had shorter ears but were about five or eight times larger than a turbofox, about the same size as Starscream himself, and there were two of them. And they did not look happy to see him.

Rather than trying to ignore them, Starscream rose to his feet, slowly, trying not to provoke them, and spread his wings to the sides, trying to make himself look bigger - it would probably have worked better if his wings had been larger, rather than just a pair of small spikes sticking out from behind his shoulders. But it was an instinctive reaction of winged bots that could emote with their wings, so it happened more or less without his intention.

While making his stand, Starscream gazed between the two growling gridwolves. He noticed something odd; they both seemed to sport large claw marks on their frames, very familiar-looking claw marks, actually. They seemed to come from Insecticon claws. Had these two perhaps been attacked by one or more Insecticons, driven from their forest and forced to seek a new home? Had they been forced into this forest, thus disturbing the wildlife existing here? Had they been the ones who injured the turbofox and killed one of its kits?

Starscream wasn't allowed to think for very long. These gridwolves seemed hungry and aggressive, and being wounded and alone, they seemed even more aggressive than their species usually was. After staring each other down for a while, one of the gridwolves suddenly dashed forward, leaping across the river toward Starscream. Starscream jumped back to dodge the gridwolf's attack and drew forth his swords from his back, crossing the blades to act as a shield against the second gridwolf's sudden attack. He swung both swords out to the sides to knock the wolves back.

The gridwolves got up again and ran off in opposite directions to flank Starscream on both sides, making Starscream uncertain which side to dodge from. But these gridwolves had obviously not faced against a Seeker before.

Rather than trying to dodge from either side, Starscream simply activated his thrusters and leapt into the air, causing the two gridwolves to crash into each other. They looked up and growled at him.

Starscream could have simply reverted to jet mode and left the forest without anyone needing to get harmed. But Starscream had grown fond of this forest and even of the turbofox family. These two gridwolves were intruders and had killed one of the kits and hurt the parent. They were so big and vicious, they would likely kill off the entire turbofox family and whatever other creatures that lived in this forest, taking the Energon for themselves. He didn't know much about gridwolves, but they were bad news and a threat to him and the smaller mechanimals of this forest.

Because of this strange need to protect the forest, Starscream did not back away from the fight. Instead, he descended and swung out with his swords. The wolves dodged to the sides as he landed, before slowly circling around him on opposite sides. Starscream tried to keep his gaze on both of them at the same time, not turning his back on either of them, instead using his peripheral vision while having the wolves on his right and left sides. He was beginning to grow tired of this battle.

"Get out of here!" he yelled as he turned to the left and charged at one of the gridwolves. It was a bad idea, but he didn't want to continue this much longer. He had to get these wolves to leave the forest somehow, even if it meant risking getting hurt. After all, he could find medical supplies, even if it was difficult. They couldn't, and they were already heavily wounded. It was surprising that they still intended to continue this pointless fight, even if they saw him as potential prey.

As soon as he set off, the gridwolf on the left jumped back while the other set after him. Instead of launching an attack on the wolf in front of him, though, Starscream quickly turned around and swung out his swords at the one behind him. It hadn't expected this attack, and he cut the gridwolf open across the belly. The wolf emitted a high-pitched wail before falling to the ground where it started to writhe and whimper in pain.

Starscream and the other gridwolf paused for a moment to stare in shock, but as Starscream turned to face the other wolf, the latter pounced on him and dug its teeth into his left arm. Starscream shrieked in pain and shook his arm wildly to shake the beast off, but it didn't let go. He had to punch it in the stomach to make it let go; he refrained from using the sharp blade this time.

As soon as the gridwolf let go of his arm, Starscream finally decided to leap away and put the swords back on his back before reverting to jet mode, blasting off into the sky and leaving the forest and the gridwolves. As he set off, he heard one of the gridwolves howl loudly, perhaps grieving for the loss of its partner.

Starscream still felt his Spark racing as he headed towards the city ruins he had made his home in. He hadn't intended to kill the gridwolves, only to get them out of the forest. They had been victims of the Insecticons just like he had been. They had been trying to start a new life somewhere else. And now, thanks to him, one of them had become a lone gridwolf, just as alone as he was.

He thought about the turbofoxes again. He still felt bad for the parent turbofox and the loss of one of its kits, but there was nothing to do about that. What was done was done, and nothing would return either the kit or the other gridwolf to life. They just had to move on and survive themselves. And that's when Starscream made another realization; if the other gridwolf died, no one would remember it, probably not even Starscream, as time passed on. That was the problem with being a loner. If you died a loner, no one would remember you. You would simply disappear like you never existed.

The thought scared Starscream more than anything else had. He did not want to die and be forgotten by the world. He wanted to be remembered. But he couldn't be remembered if he was alone. Pit, the Seekers and Decepticons had probably already forgotten about him by now. Maybe they even thought he was dead and long gone. He hadn't seen any other living Cybertronians since just after deserting the Seekers.

As Starscream touched down in the ruins and found another metal sheet to use as a sort of bandage for his wounded arm, he thought further about that thought.

"Maybe there are other Cybertronians trying to make a life outside the war?" he mused as he got his left arm wrapped up. "I can't be the only bot who's deserted and left the war. Maybe I could find others like me. Others that could take me in."

* * *

Over the course of the next week, Starscream decided to change things up a bit. Since it seemed to be getting more dangerous to linger by the Energon river - or any Energon deposit for that matter - he felt it would be safer if he could gather the Energon in it and store it away for future use. As such, he began searching through his city's ruins as well as other city ruins for empty containers like cubes, taking whatever he could find. Despite the many broken things he found in the rubble, he found a surprising amount of intact containers.

Whenever he found a suitable container, mostly a cube, he would take it with him, store in his cockpit, and go for the osmium forest. There, he simply scooped up as much Energon as there could be in the container, then put it back in his cockpit and reverted back to jet mode to return to his hideout. He then made a stash of Energon there, which he could fuel from whenever he needed to.

After his conflict with the gridwolves, he went for several rounds to gather Energon before settling down in his hideout to recover for the next couple of days, fueling on Energon, metalo-fruits and meshetables. When his wounds were healed enough, he went back out to find more containers to fill with Energon, and his stash at his new home increased. By the end of the second week, he had gathered the equivalent of ten Energon cubes and decided to lay low for the time being, deciding he had gathered enough for now.

While staying in his hideout, he decided to read more of the datapads he had acquired. He decided to read the history book, mostly because he had already read most of the other books. One of the chapters in the history book was about the caste system, founded and developed by Sentinel Zeta Prime and the Guilds of Cybertron after the disappearance of the original Primes. Most Cybertronians these days believed the Thirteen were but a simple myth, and those assuming the title of Prime, like Zeta, were merely using the title to rule over the world and do as they please with society.

Starscream, along with Jetfire and all the other Seekers, had been created into the high caste, allowing them to do pretty much whatever they wanted with their lives. Seekers were mainly warriors and scientists and were paid well in either field, so Starscream never felt like he was missing anything in life. He had Shanix, he had a good job, he had plenty of people around him and even had a best friend in Jetfire who followed Starscream wherever he chose to go. Jetfire had been pretty much his only friend as well, though, but it hadn't bothered Starscream much. He had normally been too busy with work to really care about getting together and making more friends. As long as he had Jetfire, he could handle anything.

Now though, he had left Jetfire and the Seekers, as well as the comfort of civilization and the luxuries of being a member of the high caste society. He was all alone now. He had not seen or spoken with any other Cybertronians since his desertion two weeks ago. After leaving Trypticon Station, he had turned his comm. off, thus being unable to contact anyone. Though even if it had still been on, he doubted anyone would want to speak with him, neither Decepticons nor Autobots.

But perhaps there were other Neutrals out there, refusing to take part in the war like he did? Were there others like himself, trying to survive with what they had, away from civilization? Was there a place where he belonged?

The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to find out. Starscream shut down the history book, put it away and rose to his pedes. It had only been two weeks, but he was already starting to feel lonely. It was time to find out if there were allies out there for him. Maybe even friends.

Assuming jet mode, Starscream left his hideout and exited the city ruins. He already knew there were no others in this city, having circled the ruins several times a day already. If he was to find other Neutrals, he had to find another city.

He soared across the sky, scanning the landscape below him for any life signals. He flew over a single forest before reaching a new city, also in ruins and seemingly void of battle. He decided to check it out and descended until he could assume bot mode and walk among the rubble.

Starscream walked in silence while searching for energy signals. Granted, he could have searched more effectively from the sky, but in case he was spotted while up there, he might end up provoking his potential allies into attacking him instead. He wanted to make a good first impression, which in this case meant appearing as non-threatening as possible. And these days, flight frames tended to be quite threatening in appearance, even if they weren't doing anything other than flying around.

After having walked for what felt like an hour, Starscream suddenly spotted something moving and hid behind some rubble. He peeked out from his hiding place and sharpened his optics, zooming in on the area where he had spotted the movement. There seemed to be a bot, a Flier, it seemed, yellow with a red head and wings, some hundred mechanometers from his position. A few seconds later, Starscream could see the head of another bot standing next to the Flier. It seemed to be a group.

Starscream felt his Spark racing faster than normal, having finally found other Cybertronians. He hesitated for a while though, unsure if they were Autobots, Decepticons or Neutrals like himself. It was difficult to tell from this distance, as he couldn't spot any red or purple insignias anywhere on the little of their frames that he could see. Even if they were Neutrals, there was no telling how they might react to him. They could be friendly or hostile. It was important not to appear threatening here.

Starscream looked down at himself. He was an average-sized Seeker, he wasn't all that bulky, and while he had claws, they were pretty blunt and short, barely even worthy of being called claws. He generally had a charming smile with flat denta and his color-scheme was generally considered pleasing to the optic. His arm-cannons were tucked inside his arms and his swords were on his back between his two sets of wings, both of which were small, but especially the inner pair. As far as he knew, he didn't look like a threatening mech, not like that big brute Megatron with his spiky armor, large fusion cannon and sharp teeth.

Starscream took a few deep vents to keep himself calm and collected. He stepped out from his hiding spot and walked determined towards the other Cybertronians, never taking his eyes off them and not trying to be stealthy, but also not being loud either. He didn't want to startle or surprise them, but if they did see him, he didn't want to seem like he was trying to sneak up on them.

As he was some twenty mechanometers distance from the group - he could count four bots in total - one of them pointed in his direction, and the others followed the point. They had seen him. Starscream felt his Spark race faster but did not stop walking. The bots turned full front, some of them drawing their guns or melee weapons and pointed them at him. Starscream kept calm and continued walking, albeit a bit slower now as he was getting closer.

As he was about a dozen mechanometers from the group, Starscream now noticed that there were five bots - he spotted a Mini-Con between two almost identical sleek Grounders in green and orange with green optics. The Mini-Con was white and blue with blue optics and was barely as tall as the taller bots' lower legs. Other than the Flier he had first spotted, who had yellow optics like himself, there was also a large Grounder, seemingly a truck-bot, blue and gray in color, with red optics. If these bots decided to attack him, Starscream had no doubt they would trash him. He stopped as he was a mere ten mechanometers from the group.

"State your business!" the Flier snarled, pointing a blaster at Starscream.

"I come in peace," Starscream said out loud, as calmly and as non-provocative as possible. He spread out his arms in an open gesture. "I mean no harm."

The bots glanced between each other, unsure about this stranger's intentions. The truck-bot spoke up next, pointing an arm-cannon at the Seeker.

"What's your name?" he asked with a gruff voice.

"I am Starscream," Starscream replied and held a hand on his chest. "I am a Seeker, but I'm not aligned with anyone."

The bots shared another glance but didn't lower their weapons yet.

"A deserter, eh?" the Flier concluded. "And what business do you have here? What do you want?"

"Merely company," Starscream replied calmly. "I have lived on my own for two weeks now, and I wish to join your group."

The bots shared another glance before finally seeming to relax and lower their weapons, though without putting them away completely.

"And why should we allow you to join us?" the truck-bot asked skeptically. "We already have five mouths to feed and not enough Energon to go around. We already have a Flier among us and three warriors. What can you possibly offer us?"

Starscream hesitated for a few seconds before answering. "You need Energon? I know a place where you can get plenty of Energon."

The bots shared glances again, as if mentally communicating with each other or something. These bots seemed to know each other well. The Flier took a step forward.

"We will need proof," the Flier said. "Show me this place you speak of, and I shall determine whether you can stay with us or not."

Starscream gave a small nod of acceptance. "Of course."

The bots gathered in a circle to discuss something, while one of them occasionally glanced at Starscream, perhaps to make sure he didn't try anything funny while they were talking. Perhaps they were contemplating whether it was safe for the one Flier to go alone with this stranger to a place far away from the others. Starscream simply stood and waited, trying to be patient. After about a minute, the circle broke up and the Flier approached Starscream.

"Very well," he said. "Show me this amazing place filled with Energon. The name's Paralax, by the way."

Starscream nodded and gave Paralax a small smile. "Nice to meet you, Paralax," he said. "We'll need some empty cubes. Do you have any?"

The Grounders approached the two Fliers with six empty cubes. "We just ran out of Energon yesterday," one of the sleek Grounders explained. "These are what we have."

"They will do," Starscream deemed and accepted three of the small cubes, tucking them in his cockpit. Paralax did the same with his three cubes, having a cockpit of his own. Cockpits was a common thing among Fliers, a residue from the time the Cybertronians had been enslaved by the techno-organic alien race called the Quintessons. Originally, cockpits and cabins in Grounders were installed into the Cybertronians to allow the Quintessons to ride inside of them. After the aliens had been driven off Cybertron, the Cybertronians decided to keep the installment, now using them as storage units.

Having loaded themselves, Starscream and Paralax both assumed alternate mode, Paralax turning into a jet like Starscream, though being sleeker and sharper and having longer wings than the Seeker. Perhaps he used to be a Seeker himself, considering the nice body-type he had.

The two Fliers ascended above the Grounders and took off into the sky, soaring across the landscape, soon leaving the city borders. Starscream was in the front, as he was the one leading Paralax to his secret haven.

"You look familiar, Starscream," Paralax said over the comm., Starscream having reactivated it so they could communicate while flying. "Have we met before?"

"I doubt it," Starscream replied over the comm. "Though I can understand if I look familiar to you. Are you a Seeker, or did you used to be one?"

"No, but I have often been encouraged to become one by my friends," Paralax replied. "Before and during the war. But the occupation wasn't anything for me, and I don't want to participate in this war, so I became a scavenger along with my friend Tinker, and we found these other guys and formed a group."

"Which one is Tinker?"

"The Mini-Con. He's not my best friend, but he's the only one I know from before the destruction of my home city. We used to live in Vos together."

Starscream's Spark leapt at the mention of Vos. "You're a Vosian? I come from Vos too."

"Really? Cool." There was a moment of silence before Paralax spoke again. "Wait... You don't happen to have been _Winglord_ Starscream of Vos, are you?"

Starscream felt a rush in his tanks by the title. "I was," he replied, trying to keep himself from stuttering. "I'm surprised anyone know about that version of myself anymore."

There was a longer moment of silence between them. Eventually they arrived by the osmium forest.

"Here's our stop," Starscream announced, breaking the ice.

They descended to the forest and reverted to bot mode. They started walking, Paralax gazing up and down at Starscream, who side-glanced the other on occasion, but mostly focused on the route they were taking.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Starscream finally asked, getting annoyed with the silence.

"No reason," Paralax replied in an unreadable tone. "I just never thought I would meet the former leader of Vos out in the middle of nowhere. Or ever, actually."

"Aha," Starscream replied. "Well, no need to be nervous or anything. It's not like I'm Winglord of anything anymore. Not even... leader of the Seekers..."

"I heard the Seekers all joined the Decepticons, except for a few that joined the Autobots," Paralax replied.

"Which ones joined who?"

"Don't know. I stay away from the war. I just notice when there are some really good Fliers siding with either side, when they enter the ruins for some kind of expedition or something."

Starscream sighed. He wanted to know what happened to Jetfire and the others after he had left. If they were dead or if they had joined the Decepticons. Or even the Autobots. Not knowing how his fellow Seekers were was discouraging, but whenever he thought about this, he kept reminding himself that even if they were alive, they wouldn't want to see him anymore. It didn't matter if they were alive or dead. They weren't a part of his life anymore. These new bots were. At least, they could be, if everything went well.

Eventually they reached the Energon river. Starscream stopped and smiled as Paralax let out a gasp.

"An Energon river," Paralax remarked. "And it looks clean. Is it safe to consume?"

"Very safe," Starscream replied and knelt down, scooping up a bit of Energon and drank it to demonstrate. "I've come here every day for the last two weeks to fuel. It appears Energon outside of the cities aren't polluted by industrial waste and warfare as the deposits inside the cities."

Paralax hummed and knelt down by the river as well. He hesitated for a moment before touching the surface with a digit - his fingers were blunt, unusual for a flight frame - and then scooping up a handful of Energon to sip himself. He sighed.

"All this time, there was all this Energon out here, and we didn't even know about it," Paralax said quietly. "How ignorant we've been."

"Indeed," Starscream replied and unloaded his cockpit. "And it's not just Energon. This forest and many others are full of metalo-fruits and meshetables as well as a variety of mechanimal species. They all feed off the Energon and on each other for survival."

Paralax unloaded himself and stared at Starscream in bewilderment. "Really?" he said intrigued as he began filling up a cube. "Never found metalo-plants or mechanimals all that interesting. Are they worth anything?"

"Well, in my solitude, I have discovered that eating metal helps heal wounds faster, and I even find myself getting stronger the more metal I eat," Starscream explained, eager to share this information with someone else. "Metalo-fruits and meshetables also have Energon in them, so they're very healthy to eat."

"I thought metalo-fruits were dangerous to eat?"

"Only the seeds are dangerous. As long as you eat around the core, you'll be fine. More than fine, actually. I can't believe we've only been living on Energon for all this time. No wonder the mechanimals are so fierce and strong despite their sizes and primitivity."

"I guess," Paralax replied, followed by silence as they filled the last cubes.

It didn't take too long to fill the six small cubes they had brought with them. As the last was filled, they loaded their cockpits with the full cubes and rose to their legs.

"So no one else knows about this river?" Paralax asked curiously, still staring at the surface.

"As far as I know, no," Starscream replied. "I don't think anyone knows about these natural Energon deposits. Except for Insecticons, that is."

"Insecticons?!"

"Yeah, I met one on my first day as a rogue. It gave me these scars you see on my chest here." Starscream gestured the three long, white scars across his cockpit going diagonally from his left shoulder to his right hip, the bottom scar touching his abdominal plates. "But no other Cybertronians, Autobots or Decepticons, know about these deposits. They're too busy with the war to know there's Energon enough for everyone here."

"I see..."

They reverted back to their alternate modes and left the forest, heading back to the city in which Paralax' group resided. When they returned to the camp and brought out the six full cyan cubes, the Grounders' faces beamed with joy.

"Well?" the truck-bot asked Paralax.

"It's legit," Paralax replied. "A forest with a whole Energon river. And get this, it's all clean! We didn't even have to refine this!"

"What?!" one of the sleek Grounders exclaimed.

"Clean raw Energon?" the other sleek Grounder remarked. "It sounds too good to be true!"

"I'd take you along, but it's a long trip," Starscream said with a smile. "But Paralax and I can gather enough Energon for all of you. You never have to go hungry again."

"You mean _we_ never have to go hungry again," Paralax corrected, smiling at Starscream.

Starscream stared between Paralax and the other bots. "You mean...?"

Paralax glanced at the truck-bot, and they both nodded. "You may join us, Starscream," the truck-bot said with a smile. "The name's Breakout. I'm the leader of this group. Paralax is pretty much my second-in-command of sorts."

"I'm Shiftgear," one of the sleek Grounders, the green one, introduced. "And this is my brother Beatup. And this here is Tinker."

Shiftgear gestured the Mini-Con, who silently waved at Starscream. "He doesn't really talk," Beatup, the sleek orange brother of Shiftgear, said. "But he's a great listener!"

"That's nice," Starscream replied with a smile to the surrounding bots. "I hope I can be of service to you, and that we can get along."

The bots glanced at each other and nodded before looking back at Starscream. "So do we," Breakout said. "Welcome to the team, Starscream."


	5. Stratagem

Getting used to live with others was strange. Especially after having lived alone in the wild for two weeks, right after having lived in isolation onboard an orbital space station for over a thousand years. But it was a welcome change for Starscream. Now he didn't have to be constantly on guard or look over his back every few seconds. He could sleep sound and safe, knowing there was someone up and keeping a lookout while the rest of the group was recharging.

After being accepted into the group of Scavengers, Starscream had enjoyed a cube with his five new allies. They fell into talking, mostly about how clean and tasty the Energon was and how lucky they were to have met Starscream. After drinking their Energon, Starscream and Paralax took the empty cubes and went for another round of gathering more at the river in the osmium forest, so they had Energon for the next time they refueled.

"Since we're here anyway," Starscream said after he and Paralax filled their six cubes and loaded their cockpits with them, "I gotta show you something."

"Lead the way," Paralax said and followed Starscream further into the forest.

Starscream led Paralax to the platinum-pear tree and gestured the many fruits on the tree. Paralax hummed at the sight.

"So those are metalo-fruits, huh?" Paralax remarked. "Platinum?"

"Yes," Starscream replied with a smile and activated his thrusters. "One moment."

Starscream plucked several pears from the crown until his arms couldn't hold any more. Then he returned to the ground and showed Paralax the many pears in his arms, smile still on his face. Paralax took one and studied it.

"It's safe to eat," Starscream assured. "It's good."

Paralax hesitated for a moment before he took a bite of the metalo-fruit. He chewed and swallowed, then looked at the fruit with a perplexed expression.

"It _is_ good," he said in agreement. "It's sweet and surprisingly juicy. I've never tasted anything like it."

"Not surprising," Starscream said with a chuckle. "We've all lived on the same Energon our whole lives. Compared to that, these things seem like quite the luxury."

"And you eat these every day?"

"Pretty much. Though I eat meshetables as well. It's not good to only eat precious or otherwise soft metals. Metalo-fruits are good for the interior, but meshetables do wonders for the exterior. We should get some of those too."

"Yeah. Beatup was injured the other day, so if what you say about metal being good for healing is true, then we need some of that."

"I'll show you where we can find meshetables."

The two Fliers opened their cockpits and carefully tucked a bunch of platinum-pears each in there, making sure there was still room for more, before closing and assuming jet mode. Starscream brought Paralax out of the osmium forest and instead led him to the forest where he had found tungsten-beets and titanimatoes. This forest consisted mainly of boron-beeches and manganese-maples, though there were clusters of titanimato-vines wrapped around the trunks of some of the trees.

"Titanimatoes are a good source of titanium," Starscream explained while plucking a few titanimatoes. "Good for the frame."

Paralax plucked a few himself, both of them tucking the fruits in their cockpits among their other items. They walked on until Starscream led Paralax to a glade where they found tungsten-plants sticking up from the ground. Starscream grabbed hold of the leaves and pulled up a bundle of dark gray beets. He showed the meshetables to Paralax.

"They're basically roots," Starscream explained. "The leaves are bitter and normally inedible, but the beets themselves can taste good if paired with metalo-fruits like platinum-pears. They're full of tungsten, so they're great for the frame as well."

Paralax nodded and hummed. The two of them pulled up several tungsten-beets for a while, Starscream explaining that they want the ones with big leaves, as they tended to have bigger beets. After a few minutes, they decided they had harvested enough and rose back to their feet, loading themselves with their new cargo.

"If I put anything else in there, I think I'm going to burst," Paralax commented after carefully balancing the beets on top of the titanimatoes, pears and Energon cubes.

"I think we've gathered enough now anyway," Starscream replied with a chuckle as he finished loading himself. "Let's return."

They reverted back to jet mode and left the boron forest, heading back to their camp in the city ruins. As they unloaded themselves and showed their catch to the others, they received some mixed responses. Everyone was happy with the Energon cubes but skeptical about the metalo-plants.

"They're actually okay," Paralax said, showing them the platinum-pears. "I haven't tried the other things yet, but these platinum-pears are amazing! Try one!"

The others each tried a pear and were amazed by the taste and texture of the fruits. Next Starscream had everyone try a titanimato, in which there were mixed reactions. Some liked the sour-sweet taste of the fruit or meshetable, while others found it tasted too weird for them, though it was nice and juicy. Afterwards everyone tried a tungsten-beet, which was mostly sour and slightly bitter, but also a bit juicy.

"They're good for the frames," Starscream repeated to them all and looked at Beatup. "Paralax told me you're injured, Beatup. You should probably eat more of these."

"Do I have to?" Beatup asked concerned, not too crazy with either meshetable. "Can't I just have the platinum?"

"No, your armor will grow weak and break easily. Titanium and tungsten make you strong and healthy. You can eat them together with the pears if you want to improve the taste though. I've found it works... somewhat."

As such, most of the meshetables and a few of the metalo-fruits were eaten by Beatup, until his wounds had healed completely three days later.

"How exactly did he get injured?" Starscream asked Paralax one day while Breakout and Shiftgear had gone out to scavenge the ruins for more empty cubes.

"We were recently attacked by a group of Marauders," Paralax replied.

"Marauders?" Starscream repeated.

"Yes. Since you've only been a rogue for two weeks and apparently spent most of that time in the wild, you probably don't know. See, everyone's talking about this Great War that's going on right now, between the Autobots and the Decepticons."

"Well, of course," Starscream replied. "It's the war of all wars. It's been going on for millions of years and doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon. It's been devastating most of the planet."

"That's true, but there's more going on Cybertron that just what happens between the Autobots and Decepticons," Paralax continued. "See, like us, there are a lot of bots who don't want a part of this war, so they go rogue and live outside of civilization."

"There are more groups than you?"

"Yes. You'd be surprised how many bots actually left the war or refused to take part in it to begin with. Tinker and I have been rogues for hundreds of years now, together with the others."

"How did you meet?"

"It was completely random," Beatup said from the side, joining the conversation. "Me, Shiftgear and Breakout were together until we encountered Paralax and Tinker out in the open. We were wary of each other, since those two were from Vos and everything."

"Why does that matter?" Starscream asked confused.

"Oh, didn't I tell ya?" Beatup said. "The three of us used to live in Tarn. Ya know, that city that got blown up by Vos?"

"Oh."

"Yeah. So we left the ruins of Tarn together, and then we met these two Vosians, and we eventually ended up joining forces. I mean, it's much easier to survive when ya got a flight frame on your team, ya know?"

"I suppose so," Starscream replied quietly. "I can't imagine how difficult my new lifestyle would have been, had I been created a Grounder..."

"Well, I'll tell ya, it was the Pits! It took days just to get out of the city! You guys can do that in _seconds_! I often envy you Fliers, you can do whatever ya want and go wherever ya want in no time at all. We felt pretty helpless and hopeless until Paralax here came along. Things got much easier, but it was still hard to get Energon."

"That is, until _you_ came along, Starscream," Paralax continued with a smile. "You've opened my eyes to new opportunities. I never knew there were things worth looking for in the wild. I never even knew there was still wilderness left on Cybertron."

"I used to be a scientist before I became a warrior," Starscream explained. "So I already knew a thing or two about our nature. But even I was surprised how much I've learned over these last two weeks."

"Like what?" Beatup asked curiously.

Starscream began telling the bots about everything he had learned the first two weeks of his life in solitude. About the Insecticon at the Energon pond, about the importance of not getting hurt, about the tranquility at the Energon river, about the friendly turbofoxes and about the circle of life. Most of the information he told them was lost on them, however, as they had not experienced for themselves how life depended on other life to survive or how turbofoxes weren't just mindless killing machines like they had been told. They tried to act like they understood though, but Starscream could tell they were skeptical. He sighed internally.

Four days after joining the Scavengers, Starscream noticed they were beginning to move their things around, almost as if they were preparing to leave.

"Are we going somewhere?" Starscream asked.

"Yes, we're moving further towards the outskirts of this city," Breakout explained. "We can't stay in the same place for long."

"Why not?"

"Remember when I told you about Marauders yesterday?" Paralax said, packing himself with empty cubes.

"Oh yeah, I think we kind of got off-topic there," Starscream said with a chuckle as he got to packing as well.

"Yeah, let's not do that again," Paralax replied. "So I told you there was more going on than just the Great War, right? Well, thing is, we all went rogue and stayed neutral because we didn't want to take part in the war."

"Yeah?"

"Well, turns out, the life of a rogue isn't really much better than the life of a soldier. Not just because we struggle with finding Energon and staying away from the warzones, but also because even among Neutrals, there's a war going on."

Starscream blinked in surprise. "Another war? I haven't heard of another war."

"That's because it's overshadowed by the Great War and only revolves around Neutrals. I've heard several groups call it the NAIL War."

"NAIL, as in Non-Aligned Indigenous Life-form?"

"Yeah, that's what Autobots and Decepticons tend to call us. It's kind of insulting, but we've grown to use it ourselves."

There was silence for a moment, while the bots began loading Breakout's semi-trailer with objects, while he was in truck mode.

"So what's the NAIL War about?" Starscream asked after a while.

"It's not really anything dramatic, actually," Paralax explained. "It's really just groups of rogues, Neutrals, trying to survive through the Great War. We often have to fight other groups to survive. There are different kinds of groups out here, some you'd rather meet than others."

"Such as?"

Paralax thought for a moment. "Our group, we're known as a Scavenger group," Paralax decided to explain. "We mostly keep to ourselves and avoid others as much as possible. We scavenge the ruins of cities for resources and struggle to survive." He silenced for a while. "But there are other groups out there, living in the opposite lifestyle to ours."

"You mean the Marauders?" Starscream asked.

"Yes, the Marauders," Paralax replied. "Marauders are rogues who purposefully seek out other Neutrals for their resources. They raid their camps, steal their goods and either capture or kill the bots that own them. Marauders are dangerous and because of their aggressive approach, they usually have large territories outside the warzones."

Starscream gulped at the information. "How can I tell if a bot is a Marauder or a Scavenger?" he asked.

Paralax hummed in thought. "It's not normally something you can tell on a single bot," he said. "But in a group, you can usually tell pretty easily if the bots are Marauders or Scavengers. Scavengers like us normally live in small groups and have little to no resources in possession. Energon is hard to gain, and bots usually seem hopeless in demeanor. Marauders, on the other hand, live in large groups, have many items and resources they steal from others, and they can often be seen partying and in a good mood. They often have several Fliers and thus Energon comes easily to them. They seem like they have nothing to worry about."

There was silence for a while, with Starscream taking in the information he had been given.

"So the NAIL War is Scavengers against Marauders?" he asked for confirmation.

"Pretty much," Paralax confirmed. "Though truth be told, it's really everyone against everyone. Some bots are lucky to get into a group, while others have to live alone and fight for their own survival. There aren't a lot of lone bots out there though. With everyone banding together, I don't think any loners can survive out there anymore. Especially not Grounders, but I think even a Flier like yourself will have a difficult time."

"I see," Starscream said thoughtful. "Have you encountered Marauders before?"

"Yeah, we've encountered quite a few groups over the last few hundred years. We've lost friends to them. We used to be more, but now we're just the five of us. After meeting with each other, we joined a larger group, but eventually we got into so many battles with other Marauders that we've been reduced to this five-bot Scavenger group."

"Sounds rough," Starscream replied in thought. "I hope we don't run into any of these Marauders while I'm here."

"Yeah, me too," Paralax replied quietly. "I'm sure we won't, though."

"How can you be sure?"

"Just a feeling."

After that, the rest of the packing went on in silence. There wasn't a lot to pack, but it still took a while. After everyone got fully loaded in their cockpits and cabins, Tinker hopped onto Breakout's semi-trailer, and the group began moving out of their camp, heading toward the outskirts of the city.

Starscream and Paralax could reach the outskirts in a few seconds or minutes, but because they had to get the Grounders along with them, it took a few hours instead, even when driving at a reasonable speed. It was a large city they were in. Starscream had learned from the others that it used to be Tarn, which explained its size. When Starscream went above the broken buildings, he could just barely make out the blinking lights of warfare in Iacon, far off in the horizon. The Autobot-controlled city-state was rarely without those blinking lights, though some days Starscream had seen the sky above it being quiet. Even the warmongers had to take breaks from the fighting now and then, after all. To strategize and recover from their recent battles. They couldn't fight constantly. Not even the Autobots or Decepticons.

Eventually they made it to a suitable point by the outskirts of Tarn, and everyone stopped to pack out, the Fliers assuming bot mode and unloading their cockpits.

"So you move from place to place every few days to avoid getting found by Marauders?" Starscream said in conclusion. "So they don't know where you live?"

"Exactly," Paralax replied. "We don't even live in the same city all the time. We've been living here in Tarn for the last few months, but we're planning to move on to a new city. That's why we're moving here to the outskirts for now. So we can prepare for a longer journey."

"Where are we going next?"

"We're planning to go to Vos next," Breakout replied as he was getting unloaded by Shiftgear and Beatup. "Since it's closest to Tarn. We're not going to Iacon, in any case."

Starscream didn't hear the last part of his sentence. "Vos," he repeated breathlessly. "We're going to Vos?"

"Yes, we are," Paralax replied quietly. "It's been a while since I've last been there. Though if it's anything like last time, it probably doesn't look much better than this city. But that just means we'll have the whole place to ourselves. Hopefully."

Starscream hummed and fell in thought. He hadn't been in his own camp since he first joined this group. As far as he remembered, he hadn't leave any metalo-fruits or meshetables behind to rust while he was gone. He still had a lot of Energon cubes, but they could last forever, so there was nothing to worry about that. Though now that Paralax had told him about Marauders, Starscream began to get worried if someone would find his stash and steal it while he was gone. Should he perhaps return to get his things? Since he was beginning to live with these bots and everything anyway. Then again, it was good to know that he had a Plan B if things didn't go according to plan.

 _Then again, even if the Energon DOES get stolen, so what?_ Starscream thought to himself. _I have a group now. Paralax and I can gather more cubes than I have back there. And I've already read all the datapads I found back there. There's nothing for me to go back there for. I have a new home now. A new life. And I think I'm starting to like it._

* * *

After having unpacked and set up their new camp, Breakout informed the group that they would stay in this spot for three days to prepare for their journey into the open, as they would make their way to Vos. Starscream was excited to see Vos, even though it was a mere ruin. Actually, he felt sad thinking about his city being a mere ruin now. Despite being able to fly and everything, he had not seen Vos for more than a thousand years now, having lived in isolation onboard Trypticon Station for all this time.

Vos had been bombed not long before Starscream and the Seekers were given a permanent post on the space station. The war between the Autobots and Decepticons had been going on for millions of years. In the beginning of that war, random cities and towns were bombed by terrorists supporting the Decepticons, even though most of them weren't launched by the Decepticons themselves. At least, that's what Megatron had claimed back then, anyway. Vos and Tarn had been great rivals for Primus knows how long, until the High Council attempted to pacify the two city-states by placing Vos in charge of the Cybertronian Air Command, seeing as many Seekers hailed from Vos, while Tarn was made the location of the annual State Games.

This went well until the war began, at which Tarn, with Shockwave as its leader, surrendered to the Decepticons with minimal resistance. Vos remained neutral, trying to stay out of the war. But because of Shockwave's leadership and siding with the Decepticons, as well as the deep rivalry between Vos and Tarn, the two city-states were on the verge of engaging in a war of their own. In the end, Shockwave made a deal with Starscream to have his Air Commanders bomb certain areas in Tarn where there were suspicions of Autobots hiding out. Starscream had been hesitant at first, especially as the whole scheme seemed very suspicious itself, but it had been part of some power politics, and Shockwave promised to pay well, so Starscream eventually gave in and ordered his Air Commanders to bomb Tarn.

What no one had expected was that a mysterious missile would suddenly be launched and completely annihilate the entire city-state of Vos. Many Vosians and Seekers lost their lives, and those who survived ended up joining the Autobots. Starscream himself and his top Air Commanders had not been present in Vos at the time of its obliteration, however, having been hailed by the High Council to live on Trypticon Station and protect and study its supply of Dark Energon. Starscream had been shocked to receive the news of the destruction of his city while he had been gone. Without a city to return to, he and the other Air Commanders, here among Jetfire, Thundercracker, Skywarp and Slipstream, instead went to Trypticon Station with the remaining neutral Seekers and did not return to Cybertron for more than a thousand years. Until now.

Despite the few bombings the Seekers themselves had made on Tarn, this city seemed much worse now, having probably been further attacked by raging Vosians and Seekers after the destruction of Vos. Starscream imagined Vos was much worse off than Tarn, however. He had only seen the ruins of Vos once for a brief moment before taking off to Trypticon Station, however. Not only had he lost his city-state and his people, he had also lost the title of Winglord and practically even his title of Sky Commander, seeing as he had been reduced to a mere guard of that big floating space station.

And now, he had completely lost his title of Sky Commander, his subordinates and his job. He had lost everything to the war, even if some of it he had abandoned himself. He had once been a leader, and now he was nothing. A nobot. He used to have ambitions, but those ambitions seemed to have disappeared with his abandonment of the war. Knowing he couldn't join the Autobots or Decepticons, he knew he could do nothing to rise in any ranks anymore. Even this tiny party was not worth trying to take over. He abandoned his ambitions along with his leadership back on Trypticon Station.

Perhaps it was for the best. When Starscream got ambitious about something, nothing could stop him from getting what he wanted. Nothing could stop him from trying, no matter how bad his odds were and no matter how many times he failed. But now, his ambitions meant nothing. Only his survival. Starscream imagined if he ever was to get ambitions again, he would have to get a lot more than what this tiny group had to offer. Travelling like nomads, living off on whatever they found and hoping they could find Energon for the next time they needed to refuel... ambition was a luxury Starscream could not afford to have anymore.

Two nights after settling into their new camp, Starscream was put on nightwatch while the others recharged. It was the first time he had been assigned nightwatch duty since joining, perhaps a sign that the group was getting used to him and trusting him a bit more. After all, it took a lot of trust to have a stranger watch out for the others while they were asleep and vulnerable.

During his first two weeks of solitude, Starscream had been sleeping when he was tired, rather than having a specific routine. Some days he could stay awake longer than others. He usually slept when it was dark though, as it was harder to recharge while it was day. He usually slept more during the times he was wounded, to make the healing process go faster, along with the consumption of Energon and metals.

At some point during this night, the Mini-Con named Tinker woke up and seemed unable to go back to sleep. Despite being seemingly mute, Starscream decided to strike a quiet conversation with him.

"I haven't seen a lot of Mini-Cons in my life," Starscream began, catching Tinker's attention, "though my Seekers and I lived on Luna 1 during the civil war. That was before Vos was destroyed."

Tinker nodded in understanding. He kept his gaze on the Seeker, waiting for him to continue talking.

"I didn't know any Mini-Cons lived in Vos. Were you created there?"

Tinker nodded in response. Starscream smiled.

"Most of the bots hailing from Vos are flight frames," Starscream continued. "Though I have seen a few Grounders here and there at times. But I've never seen Mini-Cons there. Though it may be because your kind is so small in stature."

Tinker shrugged in response. He didn't seem offended by the remark.

"We big bots often forget there are smaller beings in this world," Starscream continued, gaze set to the sky. "In this universe, actually. But who knows what else might be out there? There might be things bigger than ourselves out there. There might be worlds populated by beings as small as you, or maybe even smaller than you. Then you would be the giants and we would be titans. Makes you think, doesn't it?"

Tinker cocked his head, seemingly in confusion. It was probably a lot of information to take in at once this late at night. But he made no comment, neither verbal nor through body language.

"I never thought I would like living in a group," Starscream continued, still staring at the stars. "I mean, I used to be the leader of a city-state and of an army of Seekers, and I had my own little team of Air Commanders of course, but I never liked any of them. We never really got along. Not like we get along. I think I'm starting to like you guys."

Tinker watched as Starscream let out a chuckle.

"Had we met while I was still a leader, I might have looked down on you. Metaphorically," he added while looking at the smaller bot. "I admit I wasn't really the nicest bot in the world. But no one had ever really been nice to me either. Jetfire was the only real friend I had. But now, even he's gone. Dead or with the warmongers. Either way, I've lost him for good. He's lost me too, I guess."

Starscream fell silent for a while, becoming thoughtful. Tinker waited for him to continue.

"These days, I feel different," Starscream continued. "I feel enlightened. Like I suddenly understand so much more than I ever did before. I understand life now. I understand why the world works the way it does. Somewhat, anyway. In the past, I couldn't care less about where Energon came from, as long as there was plenty of it. I'd even waste it to manufacture Dark Energon that we could study. I can't believe how ignorant I used to be. Such a fool. To waste such perfectly good Energon on a doomsday weapon that most certainly is in use by Megatron and his Decepticons now."

Starscream fell silent again, longer this time. He looked back at Tinker and put on a small smile.

"But I know better now," Starscream continued quietly. "I will never waste Energon again. It's too precious to be wasted on Dark Energon or for warfare. Too precious to be used as an explosive. I don't think even our planet can handle the war much longer. I have a feeling this Energon we've found is but a temporary relief. I've recently had dreams in which the river suddenly dries out, and I starve to death. I fear that dream might become a reality soon."

Starscream paused and gazed at Tinker, who seemed at a loss for how to respond. Starscream chuckled.

"I'm sorry if I don't make sense to you," he said. "I'm not even completely sure myself how the things I say make sense to me. They just... do."

Starscream's gaze fell to the ground. "I guess you bots just don't think the same way I do," he said quietly. "You don't see the world the way I do. What makes sense to me doesn't make sense to you. Things that make sense to you don't make sense to me. We all think differently, we all see the world in different ways. We're all different. Both in body and in mind. That's what makes the world an interesting place to live in, I guess. If everyone was the same, it'd be quite boring, wouldn't it?"

Tinker cocked his head in thought, then nodded in agreement. Starscream smiled.

"I'm glad you understand," Starscream said. "You really are a great listener. Thank you for hearing me out, Tinker."

Tinker nodded and seemed tired enough now to go back to recharge. Starscream let him, and resumed his nightwatch duty.

* * *

The next day, the Scavengers were starting to make the final preparations for their journey to Vos. They gathered the items they had brought with them and started loading their cabins. Starscream and Paralax gathered some empty cubes to fill with Energon, as they had fueled the previous day. Before they left for the osmium forest, however, Breakout called Paralax, apparently having something to discuss with him. Starscream just stood and waited patiently for them to finish their conversation. When they did, a few minutes later, Paralax and Starscream both assumed jet mode and left the ruins of Tarn.

"What were you talking with Breakout about before?" Starscream asked curiously. "You had such serious expressions on your faces. It looked almost funny."

"Oh, it just turns out that we left something back in our old camp," Paralax replied with a strangely hollow voice. "So Shiftgear and Tinker are going back there together to find it."

"Really? Both of them?" Starscream remarked in confusion. "And Tinker of all bots?"

"Yeah, we left something that belongs to Tinker behind," Paralax replied. "A little gizmo that he really loves. He brings it everywhere with him. I'm surprised he didn't see it was missing until today. Though he does tend to get lost in thought and forget the world around him."

"Don't we all," Starscream said knowingly. "I haven't seen him with any gizmo though."

"Well, maybe you haven't paid enough attention to him then," Paralax accused. "Then again, he is a Mini-Con. His kind is often overlooked by us bigger bots. Even I sometimes forget he exists."

"That's pretty cold, considering you two are friends," Starscream remarked as they reached the osmium forest.

"Well, we all have our prejudices," Paralax replied quietly as they touched down and assumed bot mode. "Whether intentional or not. It's not something you think about until it's pointed out to you. And when it is, it hurts, knowing you're no better than those blind, ignorant council members that don't care about Cybertron's citizens. All they care about is power. Making themselves look good by appointing a Prime."

Silence fell between them for a while as they reached the Energon river.

"You know, I always wanted to be a Prime," Starscream said, breaking the ice. "I wanted to get the Matrix of Leadership and become the Prime that returns Cybertron to a new Golden Age. I still kind of want that."

"Don't we all," Paralax said, repeating Starscream's earlier words. "Though I suppose with your history, you might have a better chance at becoming a Prime than anyone else I know. Personally or not."

Starscream gazed at Paralax after filling one cube. "You think I could become a Prime? Really?"

"Well, maybe," Paralax said with a shrug. "But it's not really my place to say that. You do seem like you understand a few things that are lost on the rest of us though. Being all philosophical and everything. You just seem more like what a Prime _should_ be like, understanding what really goes on in the world. I mean, I don't understand it, but I know you understand, and that's pretty cool."

Starscream gazed down as he filled a second cube. "Well, the way I am right now, I don't think I can be leader of anything or anyone anymore," he said quietly. "I feel like I left a part of myself behind on Trypticon Station. I feel completely different from how I used to be. I don't know why. Could it really just be because I left the war? Because I... gave up?"

"Hey, you didn't give up," Paralax protested, pausing in filling his cubes. "Quitting the war isn't giving up. It just means you're not willing to give up your life yet. Leaving the war is actually the opposite of giving up. Even if it doesn't feel like it. Even if that's what others say. You're really brave for leaving the war on your own, willing to survive alone, without support of any kind. I really admire you for that, Starscream."

Starscream felt his face heat up by the compliment. "Oh, you know, I've never really liked giving up. You're right. I'm no quitter. I'm a survivor. Thanks, Paralax."

Paralax didn't answer, instead they just filled the rest of their cubes in silence. Starscream side-glanced his friend. He seemed oddly gloomy. Maybe he was having a bad day? Most days were probably bad days for these bots, he supposed.

As they loaded themselves with the cubes, they decided to stop by the platinum-pear tree as well to harvest a few pears for the journey. They didn't go to the boron forest to get meshetables. That could wait until after they reached Vos. Even though it would probably take one or two days for the Grounders to get from Tarn to Vos with all their equipment.

Having loaded themselves full enough, the two Fliers assumed jet mode and returned to Tarn. As they touched down and assumed bot mode, Shiftgear and Tinker hadn't returned yet.

"We got Energon and platinum-pears," Starscream reported. "Should be enough for the journey." A sudden thought popped into his mind. "Hey, do you guys ever get attacked when you travel from city to city?"

"Pretty often," Breakout replied with crossed arms, he and Beatup waiting for the others to return. "In fact, most of the ambushes made on us are launched out in the open. In the cities, we have more places to hide in from other groups. There are no hiding places out in the open landscape. That's what makes these journeys so risky. It's out in the open that we lose comrades. Every time we've moved from one city to another, we've lost at least one comrade, whether to the weather or to the Marauders."

Starscream gulped. "Every time? That sounds a bit discouraging..."

"This time probably won't be any different," Paralax commented and gazed at Starscream for a moment in silence. "When we're out there, it's every bot for themselves. We try to stick together the best we can, but in the end, you have to look out for yourself. Make sure you do that, Starscream."

Starscream gazed between the bots, then forced a smile on his face. "Don't worry, I always look out for myself," he replied. "And who knows, maybe everyone will survive this journey, now that I'm here."

Breakout and Paralax shared a glance in silence, no one making any further comments. The hum of an engine sounded from the right, and the bots looked in direction of the sound. They saw a cloud of smoke following behind a sleek green car, belonging to Shiftgear. Soon he arrived at the camp and assumed bot mode. His face expressed panic. Something seemed off.

"What's wrong?" Paralax asked confused. "Wait, where's Tinker?"

"Y-yeah," Shiftgear stuttered. "Tinker wandered off on his own, and then he fell into a crevice. He's trapped down there!"

"What?!" everyone exclaimed.

"I tried to reach him," Shiftgear continued, "but the chasm is too deep and steep. Only a Flier can get in there and get him out again."

"Then I will go save him," Paralax said determined.

"The crevice is too narrow for a jet to fly down in or out from," Shiftgear protested. "Only thrusters or a jetpack will work."

"Scrap," Paralax swore. "And I don't have thrusters installed in my legs."

Everyone looked at Starscream. He gazed among them and reset his vocalizer.

"I do have thrusters in my legs," he admitted. "And I kind of like the little guy. I'll gladly save him in your place, Paralax."

Paralax put on a painful smile. "Thank you, Starscream," he said, his voice wavering. "You really are a good friend. Please bring him back safely."

"I will," Starscream said and turned to Shiftgear. "Show me where this chasm is."

Shiftgear nodded and assumed alt mode, followed by Starscream's transformation, and the pair left the rest of the group, heading back toward the heart of the city.

"Tell me what happened," Starscream said over the comm. while flying at slow speed and low altitude so Shiftgear could keep up with him.

It took a moment for Shiftgear to find his ability to speak. "We were searching the camp, then the area around the camp," he explained, almost stuttering. "And then the ground gave in under his feet, and he fell into a hole."

"Didn't you say he wandered off?" Starscream asked confused.

"He did," Shiftgear replied quickly. "But not very far. Can you believe how fragile an area we've been camping in this whole time?"

"I never noticed," Starscream remarked.

"We're here," Shiftgear announced as they arrived in the camp.

The two mechs reverted to bot mode, and Starscream followed Shiftgear to the place a little outside of the camp where a chasm had suddenly appeared which didn't use to be there.

"He's in there?" Starscream asked for confirmation.

"Yes, right down there," Shiftgear replied.

As they made their way toward the hole, which definitely seemed too small for a jet to fly in or out of, Starscream suddenly remembered something.

"Did you find that thing you were looking for?" he asked.

"Thing?" Shiftgear repeated in confusion, then realized what he meant. "Oh, the gizmo! No, we didn't find it. I forgot about it when Tinker fell down the hole."

"Well, we'll find it when we get him out of there," Starscream said as they reached the hole. He leaned forward and looked down at the darkness below.

"It seems pretty deep," Starscream commented. "You're right about not being able to-"

Starscream felt something hit him in the back, and in the next second he found himself falling into the chasm. The darkness surrounded him, and he felt a rush in his tanks by the sudden situation. Before he could react, he hit the bottom of the chasm face-first and let out a huff by the impact.

Slowly, Starscream rose to his hands and knees and looked up. "Hey, what was that for?!" he shouted.

There was no response. There was no bot in sight at the top.

Starscream sighed and rose to his feet. He heard a sound and turned around, staring into the darkness. Right in front of him, Tinker stepped out from the darkness in his small white and blue form, his big blue eyes gazing at Starscream.

"Tinker," Starscream remarked. "You're alright. Let's-"

Before he could continue, Tinker let out a high-pitched ringing screech that pierced through Starscream's audio receptors. He clutched the sides of his head and fell back on his knees and whined in discomfort over the loud noise. It was over in a few seconds, but even as he pulled his hands away, Starscream found his hearing impaired.

"What was..." he drawled out, finding his words blurred by the after-effects.

He stared ahead of him, at Tinker's small figure. In the next second, Tinker's body began reshaping itself, undergoing transformation. Starscream stiffened as he saw what Tinker transformed into.

In front of him, instead of a Mini-Con, stood a large white and blue... Scraplet!

Starscream froze in place by the sight in front of him. "A Scrapmetal...?" he uttered quietly. "You..."

The white Scraplet parted its metallic mouth and bared its large, razor-sharp teeth at Starscream, contorted in a wide grin. In the next second, Tinker leapt into the air and flew out of the chasm, disappearing from the still-shocked Starscream's point of view.

"What... just happened...?" Starscream asked himself in a whisper.

Before he could think straight, his sense of hearing began returning to him. He heard faint whirring and clicking coming from the darkness in front of him. He gazed ahead, feeling adrenaline course through his body. Countless purple eyes glowed in the dark.

In the next second, a swarm of Scraplets emerged from the darkness.

They went right for Starscream.

Starscream let out a scream.

He was in big trouble now.


	6. Betrayal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to make a Scrapmetal race based on the Scrapmetals from Cybertron/Galaxy Force and the Scraplets of Aligned.  
> Hope you're enjoying the story so far.

Starscream leapt to his feet, finally getting his senses back. But he could not react quickly enough to avoid the Scraplets; they were over him in an instant. They immediately latched onto his armor, all over his body.

Starscream screamed in pain as the Scraplets began chewing through his armor with their circular-shaped razor teeth. It was unbearable, and it was happening all over his body. The only good thing was that it seemed to be a small swarm, as no more Scraplets arrived other than the ones on his armor, but they were still plenty enough to be able to completely devour him within an hour or so.

Starscream turned on his thrusters and shot out of the hole as quickly as possible. The first thing he had to do was to get out of the cramped space where he was vulnerable. He just made it to the top when one of the Scraplets bit onto his right thruster, causing Starscream to fall onto the ground.

Starscream threw himself away from the crevice and screamed in panic as he writhed in pain and slammed himself against the ground, got up and rammed himself against any walls he got near, trying to crush the Scraplets and shake them off. But they had already dug far into his armor and were stuck fast because of their strong bites, so they didn't fall off easily.

Starscream stopped running around and instead stood still and started grabbing the Scraplets, prying them off and crushing their heads. The ones he caught did die, but there were too many of them, and they had already eaten large portions of his outer armor. The pain was unbearable, and Starscream began feeling weak, barely able to keep himself standing.

But he forced himself to keep standing. If he fell down, the Scraplets would finish him off, and he would die.

" _HELP!_ " Starscream cried out after prying two Scraplets off his face and crushing them. " _PARALAX! SHIFTGEAR! ANYONE! HELP ME!_ "

But Starscream realized his cries were no use. They would not come for him. They would not save him.

They had betrayed him. They had lured him into a Scraplet trap, intending to kill him.

Starscream was alone. No one would come and save him.

The only one who could save him... was _himself_.

He would die if he didn't do something. And no one would miss him.

"I will not let you win!" Starscream screeched and ripped off more Scraplets to crush them, but it was no use. There were too many of them. There were even ones on his wings and his back, where he couldn't reach them. Scraplets were weak to cold temperatures, but he had no fire-extinguisher or cold weapons on him.

Suddenly Starscream got an idea and looked at his arms, where quite a few Scraplets were latched on. His null-rays. He had null-rays. Null-rays could disrupt any electrical device, including Cybertronians. But did it work on Scraplets?

"Guess we're about to find out," Starscream groaned and pried off the Scraplets on his right arm so he could access his null-ray.

A section on Starscream's damaged arm opened, and a null-ray cannon emerged from it. He pointed the cannon at one of the Scraplets on his other arm and fired it. The pink laser hit the Scraplet, and it went stiff, falling onto the ground below him as he shook his arm. While it was immobilized, Starscream stomped on the pest, killing it.

The null-ray worked on Scraplets, it seemed. But there were still too many of them for him to aim at them all, not to mention the ones on his wings and back.

Another idea popped into Starscream's adrenaline-induced mind, despite the heavy pain and fatigue that was beginning to take a toll on him. The null-ray was an electric blast. At high enough power and at long enough time, it could spread from target to target if they were connected through something that conducted electricity.

Like Starscream himself.

Without hesitation, Starscream moved his right arm behind his back and aimed the cannon at his spinal strut. It was the most efficient way to let the null-ray course through his body to hit every single Scraplet on him. It was a risky move, but hopefully the Scraplets didn't have as high a shock tolerance as bigger bots did.

Furthermore, Starscream had long ago given himself a sort of vaccination against electro-disrupters when he had acquired his null-rays. It was as a precaution for situations such as these, where he could remove threats from his body without endangering himself. He wasn't immune to paralysis, but with the vaccine he had gained a higher resistance to his own null-rays than other bots. If there was anything Starscream did, it was taking precautions. He just hoped it would work, now that he needed it the most.

Without hesitation, Starscream clenched his fist and pulled the trigger.

He let out a scream as the electricity coursed through his frame, to his feet, to his fingertips, to the tips of his wings, to his head and everywhere else, inside and out. He screamed in discomfort and pain from the shock and the Scraplets still chewing through his armor. Despite the pain and discomfort, despite his fatigue, he kept his fist clenched, allowing the null-ray to spread through his entire body.

As soon as he felt the Scraplets stop vibrating, Starscream relaxed his fist, and the cannon stopped firing the null-ray. As the electricity disappeared, Starscream fell together forward, but he stopped himself from falling, his back pulling backward to keep him upright. Smoke fumed from the seams, crevices and wounds from his body. Several Scraplets lost their grip and fell on the ground with loud clanks.

Starscream rose and straightened himself, denying his body rest. The Scraplets may be stunned, but there was no telling how long the effect would last. It was definitely not enough to kill them. He ruffled his armor, waved his arms and bounced to shake off the remaining Scraplets still attached to his body.

Still pumped by adrenaline, Starscream did a quick check on himself before reverting to jet mode and blasting off into the sky. He could not afford to stay behind and waste time stomping them all to death, as the effect could wear off at any moment, and he did not have the time or energy to fight another round against the pests.

As he was in the air, he did a quick scan of himself to make sure no stragglers remained on his armor. Finding nothing, Starscream powered up his thrusters and promptly left the city in seconds.

"That was close," he said to himself in huffs, the adrenaline starting to wear off, but his Spark still racing fast. "Too close."

As the danger of the Scraplets had been dealt with, instead rage started building up in him.

"They tricked me," Starscream hissed to himself. "They lured me into a trap. That Tinker... he was a Scrapmetal this whole time?! Did any of the others know this?"

Starscream had not seen Scrapmetals in person before, but he had seen pictures and heard stories about them. Scrapmetals were a special race of Mini-Cons with the ability to transform into Scraplets. Naturally, they were about six times larger than the actual Scraplets and slower in flight, but they were dangerous in their own way.

Scrapmetals had the ability to control Scraplets, even large swarms of thousands of individuals. The Scraplets were unable to resist the power of Scrapmetals, much like how it was rumored that Arachnicons had the ability to control Insecticons to do their bidding. He had not seen either case happen before, but now he knew that at least the former was true.

While Arachnicons used words to control Insecticons, Scrapmetals appeared to use sounds on high frequencies to control Scraplets. Like Cyclones, Scrapmetals spoke a different language from other Cybertronians and were unable to say anything but chirps and buzzing. Now Starscream understood why Tinker had been silent all the time while Starscream had been with the Scavengers. They had been keeping Tinker's cover as a Scrapmetal. And now he knew why.

They had tried to kill him. Or at least Tinker had. That sound he had emitted earlier must have been a command to the Scraplets to attack and feast on Starscream.

"I can't believe this," Starscream snarled as he flew across the open landscape, not really aware of where he was going. "This has to be a misunderstanding."

He couldn't forget the image of the grinning Tinker in Scraplet mode though.

"Maybe Tinker is the one tricking the others," he theorized concerned. "Maybe he's the one who caused their group to decline and killed their comrades. I should warn them."

Now Starscream realized he was heading for the osmium forest, rather than the city where his camp was. He wasn't sure where Vos was situated from his position and from his path from Tarn. He knew, however, that he had to head for Vos if he was to find the others and warn them about Tinker.

Starscream was about to turn around when his scanners picked up five energy signals below him. His Spark skipped a beat. Paralax and the others were right below him and going fast. Much faster than they had throughout the week Starscream had known them.

Starscream followed them, higher in altitude and a distance behind them. It didn't seem they had detected him yet. He opened his comm. and was about to speak up, but silenced as Paralax spoke. Not to him, but to the others.

" _We sure showed him, huh guys?_ "

" _Yeah,_ " Shiftgear's voice sounded. " _He bought it all. Shoved him right in there. Never saw it coming._ "

" _What an idiot,_ " Beatup's voice sounded. " _Buying all our friendship junk and telling us all those dumb things about life and stuff. BORING!_ "

" _I don't think I could've standed one more day with that pompous, arrogant know-it-all,_ " Breakout's voice sounded. " _I'm glad he's gone now._ "

" _Me too,_ " Paralax said. " _By the way, good job, Tinker. We couldn't have done this without you. You Scrapmetals really are useful in these trying times._ "

A buzzing noise sounded over the transmission. Tinker was talking to the others. He had never talked when Starscream was there. Starscream heard laughing from the comm.

" _I know, I'm sorry you couldn't stay behind with the other Scraplets,_ " Paralax chuckled. " _I bet he would've made a delicious meal for you._ "

Starscream felt rage build up in him the more they talked about him. He also felt hurt, and he felt a pressure behind his optics, his head currently stored somewhere in his chassis. They had betrayed him after all. And not only had they betrayed him, they were even gloating about it. They had no idea he was following right behind them.

" _Don't worry, soon we'll all be able to get all the Energon we could ask for,_ " Breakout's voice sounded. " _And it's all ours._ "

Starscream only partly registered Breakout's words. He gazed forward and now realized they were all going in direction of the osmium forest, not Vos.

Suddenly, Starscream remembered the things Paralax had told him.

_Are they worth anything?_

_So no one else knows about this river?_

_And you eat these every day?_

_Tinker and I have been rogues for hundreds of years now, together with the others._

_You've opened my eyes to new opportunities. I never knew there were things worth looking for in the wild._

_After meeting with each other, we joined a larger group, but eventually we got into so many battles with other Marauders that we've been reduced to this five-bot Scavenger group._

Starscream thought about the things Paralax had told him. Of the questions he asked. He remembered how strange and hollow his voice had been this morning. How serious his and Breakout's faces had looked when they talked in private. How strangely forced Shiftgear's voice and body language had been when he returned without Tinker. How everyone had immediately looked at Starscream when talking about rescuing Tinker.

They had planned this all day. Maybe even for several days. They had never trusted him. They had never seen him as one of their own. They had been acting this whole time, taking advantage of him and his knowledge. And he fell for it all.

They had never planned to go to Vos. They were going to invade the osmium forest, claim the Energon river for themselves and slay the mechanimals of the forest. No one else knew about the forest. They would never have to leave again. The thought infuriated Starscream, feeding his anger over having been tricked and betrayed.

Unable to stop himself, Starscream sped up and caught up to the others. He fired his cannons at the ground in front of the group, and the Grounders immediately pulled to a stop, Paralex stopping in his flight as well. Starscream circled around and reverted to bot mode, landing on his feet right in front of the group as they assumed bot mode as well. Everything in Breakout's semi-trailer fell to the ground as he transformed, including Tinker who leapt off and planted his feet on the ground among the others.

Paralax reverted to bot mode as well and stood with the others beside Breakout. "Hey, what gives, Starscream?!" Paralax exclaimed and pointed an accusing finger at Starscream. "Why are you shooting at us?!"

Starscream didn't respond. He stood with his head lowered and his arms spread, venting deeply, trying hard not to lose his cool. He raised his head and glared at Paralax and growled.

"You... tricked me," Starscream snarled.

"What?" Breakout said in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"You betrayed me," Starscream growled louder. "You lured me into a hole filled with Scraplets! You tried to kill me!"

The bots shared glances with each other before looking back at Starscream with offended looks.

"How dare you accuse _us_ of betrayal?" Paralax hissed back. " _You_ are the one who betrayed _us_!"

Starscream loosened his angry expression for a moment to stare at them in disbelief. "What?" he said. "I did not betray you."

"Don't be an idiot," Beatup said from behind Paralax and Breakout. "Shiftgear told us how you tried to shove him into the hole with Tinker. He would never have been able to get up again!"

Starscream stared in shock. "That's a complete lie!" Starscream hissed. " _He_ was the one who shoved _me_ into the chasm! And Tinker sent those Scraplets after me!"

The bots shared another glance with each other before bursting into laughter. Starscream's rage welled up again.

"It's true!" Starscream exclaimed aggravated. "Tinker commanded the Scraplets to kill me, and then he flew out by himself!"

"Tinker can't fly," Shiftgear protested and gestured the Mini-Con beside him. "Does he look like a Flier? He has no wings or thrusters."

"That's because he's a _Scrapmetal_!" Starscream shrieked. "He turns into a Scraplet and flies out with electro-magnetism!"

"Wow, wow, hey," Paralax said and waved with his hands. "You have no right to insult Tinker or any of us. He's not a Scraplet, much less a _Scrapmetal_."

"Then how did he get out of the hole, huh?!" Starscream hissed. "If he didn't fly himself out, and if I didn't save him, and if Shiftgear's too incompetent to do it himself, then how the frag did he get out of that chasm?!"

The bots shared another glance with each other, much to Starscream's annoyance and anger.

"Eh... what hole?" Paralax asked with a shrug. "Who said Tinker was trapped in a hole?"

Starscream stiffened and stared at the bots in disbelief. "I don't believe it," he said and let his arms fall to his sides. "You're not Scavengers, are you? You're Marauders, aren't you?"

Yet again the bots shared glances with each other.

"What makes you say that?" Breakout asked.

"I remember what you told me about your group, Paralax," Starscream replied, strangely calm now. "You told me you used to be part of a larger group. You then told me that you got into so many battles with other Marauders that you were reduced to the number you are now."

"And?" Paralax said with crossed arms. "What of it?"

"I noticed you said 'other' Marauders. At first I didn't think anything of it, but now I realize... you slipped your tongue, didn't you?"

Paralax gained a surprised expression on his face and let his arms fall to his sides. His face contorted into a snarl, and he swore lowly. When he looked back at Starscream, he suddenly gave him a smirk. Not a smile.

"You really are too clever for your own good, Starscream," Paralax said with a silky tone. "That's right. We are Marauders. At least, we used to be. But we are not any regular Marauders. We are not those barbarians who charge in, destroy property and violate others."

"We allow lone bots to join our group," Breakout continued, also smirking. "And then we earn their trust by becoming friends with them. They tell us all their secrets, they help us out the best they can. And when they are no longer of use to us... we get rid of them."

Starscream gazed shocked at the group. "By using Scraplets," he concluded.

"Ding-ding," Beatup uttered with a grin. "Thanks to this little Scrapmetal Mini-Con we got here, we never have to worry about traitors or useless bots. They all get fed to the Scraplets."

Starscream frowned at the information. "Then why are you all still together?" he asked.

"We all got our own useful things," Shiftgear said. "And we came up with this strategy together originally. All those who refused to be part of the gig... well... Tinker took care of them."

Starscream stared at the little Mini-Con. Though his mouth was covered by a mask, Starscream imagined he too was grinning under it. Just like how he had grinned at the Seeker back in the chasm, in Scraplet mode.

"You didn't lose your comrades to Marauders or weather," Starscream snarled in realization. "You took them out yourselves, didn't you?"

"You're on fire," Beatup said and cackled. "You really are one of a kind."

"You know, we were pretty surprised when you showed up one week ago," Paralax said, his smile falling. "Normally we find lone bots and ask them to join us, deprive them of information and then dump them on the Scraplets. But you... you were different. You came to us willingly. You willingly asked to join us. We didn't have to make you say anything. You just told us everything you knew. You even told us about the Energon river, metalo-fruits and meshetables..."

There was a moment of silence before the bots started laughing, to Starscream's confusion.

"I had to restrain myself from laughing so many times this week," Paralax continued, still chuckling. "How easy it's been to win your trust, how easy it was to become friends with you. I couldn't believe what a big gullible idiot we had reeled in. Now we never have to go hungry again. And we'll never have to fight anyone else for it."

Starscream snarled. "There are already residents living in that forest," he hissed. "What are you going to do to them?"

"What we always do to useless bots," Breakout said. "We eliminate them. Then there will be no competition for the Energon."

"Same goes for you," Shiftgear said. "You are no longer of use to us."

Everyone drew their blasters and aimed them at Starscream. Starscream loosened his expression and felt another strange sense of calm, staring blankly ahead.

"Was anything you told me true?" he asked quietly.

"Us being from Vos and Tarn is true," Paralax said. "Which is why we can't let you live. _Winglord_ Starscream."

Starscream felt a rush in his tanks by the addressing, but did not lose his blank stare.

"You were the one who ordered the Seekers to attack Tarn," Breakout growled. "It's your fault Tarn is a ruin!"

"And because of your order, the Tarnians launched a missile to destroy Vos," Paralax snarled. "You're the real traitor in this world. You destroyed Tarn _and_ Vos! You killed both our peoples!"

"But we thank you for everything you told us," Breakout said. "A shame to waste such knowledge and potential. Had you been anyone else other than Winglord Starscream, perhaps we might have actually let you stay with us. We could really have used more of you."

"But sadly, we've had enough of you and your 'circle of life' scrap," Beatup said. "Now _you_ can join the circle of life and become scrap yourself."

Starscream's face seemed to darken. He felt empty inside. Completely calm. He should have been raging, but his anger had gone off the charts, and he was unsure how to express what he felt now. He did know one thing however.

They were going to pay.

"You know," Starscream began, while the others still seemed to hesitate in shooting him yet, "I was really hoping it was all just a misunderstanding. That it was an accident, or that Tinker was playing you all for fools. But now I see the truth..."

Starscream looked up and stared ahead, gaze focused on Breakout and Paralax. He reached behind his back and drew forth his two swords.

"I can't allow you lot to live," Starscream said calmly.

The bots stared at him for a moment. Then they burst into laughter once again.

" _You_ , kill _us_?" Breakout cackled. "Look at yourself! You're a wreck, you can barely stand! How do you expect-"

Without warning, Starscream charged forward and made a quick swing with his left sword, slicing off Breakout's head. The laughter died immediately, and the bots stared in shock as Breakout's body fell to the ground, the head rolling across the ground. Starscream stood for a moment doing nothing.

"Breakout..." Beatup whispered in disbelief. "No!"

"You piece of scrap!" Shiftgear shrieked and aimed his blaster at Starscream, firing it.

Starscream leaned back, dodging the laser. His gaze set on Shiftgear, and before any of the bots' blasters could hit him, Starscream had run over to Shiftgear and sliced him in half diagonally, from the left shoulder to the right hip. Shiftgear screamed as he fell to the ground and writhed in pain, slowly leaking out.

"Shiftgear!" Beatup screamed and drew a sword. "You'll pay for that, you-"

Beatup swung his sword, but Starscream blocked it with his left one and impaled the other's chest with his right sword, piercing through the Spark chamber and out again. Beatup coughed and hacked before falling to the ground, his Spark extinguishing.

"No!" Paralax screamed and assumed jet mode. He ascended to the sky and circled around, firing his cannons at Starscream on the ground.

Starscream hopped from place to place, making no effort to dodge the shots. His face remained blank, still feeling empty inside. He was barely even thinking; his body seemed to be moving on its own. Like before. When he fled from Trypticon Station.

Next to him, Tinker decided to join the battle and assumed his alt mode, turning into a large white Scraplet. Before Starscream could react, Tinker chomped onto the Seeker's abdominal plates and started chewing.

Starscream howled in pain by the large rotating teeth grinding his torso. But he knew what to do now.

He threw his left sword into the air.

He deployed his left null-ray and aimed it at Tinker's head. He fired it, and the pink laser stunned the Scrapmetal.

With a swift move, Starscream pried Tinker off his chest with his left hand and threw him into the air.

He swung with his right sword and sliced Tinker in half on the vertical side, instantly killing him. The Scrapmetal halves fell on the ground with hollow clanks, Energon gathering in a puddle between them. Without looking, Starscream lifted his left hand and caught the other sword as it fell from the air.

" _TINKER!_ " Paralax screamed from the air as his shooting stopped. " _NOOO!_ "

Starscream leapt back as Paralax assumed bot mode and knelt down by the remains of his comrades. He shook in anger, and perhaps sorrow.

"You monster," Paralax snarled and got up, rage painted all over his face, staring at Starscream. "You will pay for this!"

Paralax charged forward, but stopped when Starscream moved his swords in a scissor-like position at the other's neck cables. If Paralax made a move now, his head would fly right off.

The two bots stared silently into each other's eyes with hatred. Starscream hesitated.

"You made a big mistake," Paralax hissed. "Tinker was the last of his kind. There are no other Scrapmetal Mini-Cons left on Cybertron now."

"Why would I care?" Starscream hissed back, feeling the rage welling back up in him.

"Scrapmetals aren't just beasts," Paralax said. "They eat Scraplets too. They're the perfect predators for the pests. Now, there's no way we can terminate the Scraplet or Insecticon populations on Cybertron anymore."

Starscream cocked a brow in mild surprise. "As far as I've been told, you used Tinker exclusively to hunt other bots and execute them. When have you ever used him to kill Scraplets or Insecticons?"

Paralax snarled in response. "It doesn't matter what we did with him," he hissed. "You killed him. You've doomed Cybertron now."

Starscream barked a laugh. "Oh, so now you're blaming the state of the _planet_ on me too?" Starscream said, still chuckling. "How low can you get? And it's not the Scraplets or Insecticons which are going to be the end of Cybertron. It's _all_ of us. The Autobots, the Decepticons, the NAILS, me, you, _everyone_! We've all been blind to our planet's crisis, and now it's too late to stop it. All we can do now is wait for doomsday and bide our time until we are forced to leave our homeworld."

Paralax blinked in surprise and disbelief at Starscream's words, then growled. "There you go, spouting nonsense again," he hissed. "I hope you're happy with yourself. You will burn in the Pit for what you did to Tinker and the others."

"I'm sorry, I thought _you_ were the ones who were planning to kill _me_?" Starscream said in a fake confused tone. "And you can quit acting like you cared about the Mini-Con. You never cared about him. He was just a tool to you. A weapon. Isn't that right?"

Paralax growled louder. "You have no idea what you're talking about!"

"The last of his kind," Starscream repeated thoughtfully. "Eater of Scraplets. That's why you took him with you, even though you said you weren't friends, isn't it? He _was_ just a tool to you, a weapon that could ensure your safety against whatever may come across you, be it Scraplets, Insecticons or other bots. You took advantage of his power and abused it to get whatever you wanted, rather than actually trying to defeat evil and eliminate the Scraplet and Insecticon threat like you said."

"Well, who wouldn't?" Paralax defended. "I saw potential in him that everyone else cast aside. Maybe I did take advantage of him, maybe he was just my tool, but at least he had someone to watch his back. Not like you, you backstabber, you monster, you _traitor_..."

Starscream giggled by the words Paralax spouted. It seemed to confuse Paralax.

"Why are you laughing?" he asked.

"I am so angry now, I can't help but laugh," Starscream chuckled. "You guys have _really_ pissed me off. And you _don't_ want to make a Seeker angry, let alone the _leader_ of _all_ Seekers, the mightiest air warrior on Cybertron and in the galaxy! _NO ONE SHALL DARE BETRAY STARSCREAM!_ "

Paralax seemed to cringe by the shout and waited for Starscream to finish him off. But Starscream still hesitated.

"Then why don't you just kill me already?" Paralax said mockingly. "Aren't you going to take your revenge? Or are you too much of a coward to finish off your dear old friend Paralax?"

Starscream stared into Paralax' eyes and loosened his frown, again assuming a blank stare.

"It's not revenge I'm looking for," Starscream said and tightened his grip on his swords. "It's justice."

Without another word, Starscream swiftly spread his arms, the blades seperating Paralax' head from his body, both falling on the ground the next second.

Starscream let his arms fall to his sides. He vented deeply as the adrenaline came down. Fatigue grasped his frame, and the swords fell from his hands. The pain from the Scraplets and Tinker's attacks returned, but he barely reacted to it. Instead something else twisted his insides.

Starscream fell to his knees with his head lowered, staring at Paralax' corpse in front of him. He raised his head and looked around him. Shiftgear had by now leaked out from his two halves, and his Spark had been extinguished. Beatup lay on his back with Energon stains on his chest where his Spark chamber was. Breakout lay behind him on his front, his head lying a few mechanometers away. The two halves of Tinker in Scraplet form lay a few mechanometers in front of him, behind Paralax.

Starscream looked down at himself. His body was mangled with Scraplet bite marks, large chunks of metal missing from his armor, and he was leaking several places. His wings had holes in them and were missing a few bits at the edges, but they were apparently still able to hold him in flight. His right thruster had been damaged, and he was unsure if he could fly in bot mode anymore. On the side of his abdomen, a large chunk of metal was missing, and a lot of Energon was leaking from the wound. He was heavily injured and losing Energon every second. He seemed ready for the scrapyard.

Yet he felt nowhere near death. He was exhausted, but not because of the wounds. He felt his insides twisting as he looked at his hands, his Energon-stained hands, the yellow swords stained blue with Energon, and at the several dead bodies he had just made.

He felt a pressure behind his optics. This time he couldn't restrain himself, and he started sobbing. Oily tears started welling up in his optics and began streaming down his face as he started to wail.

He had been betrayed by bots he thought were his friends. His allies. And now he had killed them all. He hadn't even spared the Mini-Con. He didn't even hesitate.

"Why did you do this to me?!" Starscream screamed at the sky, which had become dark and filled with twinkling stars and the twin moons. "Why?! _Why?! WHY?!_ "

He slammed his fists on the ground while screaming and wailing in grief. Grief over having lost his friends, having been betrayed by them, but especially for having believed they actually were his allies. For foolishly putting his trust in strangers. He stopped his assault and just stared at the ground, his tears dripping and forming small puddles below him.

"I will never trust anyone again," Starscream hiccupped with a wavering voice at the ground. "I can't trust anyone anymore. Everyone's out to get me. They will never get me. I won't let them."

The sadness was replaced with anger once again.

"They will all pay," Starscream hissed and rose to his hands. "I don't need a group. I can handle myself. I'll show them."

He rose to his feet, his fatigue decreasing just a little by his determination.

"I will not die here," Starscream said and looked in direction of the osmium forest. "I will not die without a fight. I will survive. I'm a survivor. You said so yourself, Paralax. No wait, that was me, wasn't it?"

Starscream looked back down at Paralax and wiped the tears off his face.

"Was all that scrap about me being a Prime a lie too?" he asked the corpse, then chuckled. "Guess I'll never find out now."

Starscream stared back up at the twin moons, which were both full and bright, illuminating the night sky. He felt a strange calm, though in a different way than earlier. Earlier he had been so mad he had become calm. Now, he was merely calm because he knew the truth now.

"I am a loner," he announced silently to the sky. "A rogue. A stray. I'm not meant to be with others. Not as times are now. This is the path I have chosen. This is what I get. Solitude. Loneliness."

Starscream threw his head back and screamed at the stars, letting out the last of his anger and sorrow of today's events. When he finished, he vented deeply and stared back at the moons.

"Hear my scream of solitude," he said quietly. "And fear it. For it will be the last thing you hear, should you decide to doublecross me."

* * *

Despite his wounds and fatigue, Starscream didn't return to his camp in the other city just yet. Despite how much he resented his former group, he couldn't leave them behind out in the open. Not because he cared about them, but because he feared any passing travellers might find them and figure out where they had been going. The osmium forest could still be found this way, and the Energon river would still be doomed.

So instead, Starscream took their bodies and returned to Tarn - he discovered that despite the damage to his right thruster, he was still able to fly in bot mode, though struggled due to his condition. He started with the heaviest load, Breakout, along with his head.

Rather than burying them, Starscream decided for a more efficient way to get rid of the evidence. He brought Breakout's body to the chasm he had been attacked in. He could hear just the faintest of whirring noises. It seemed the Scraplets had finally been released from paralysis and, seeing as their prey had disappeared, returned to their hive.

Starscream hovered just a little above the chasm, and then let go of Breakout's body. The body and head fell right into the chasm and hit the bottom with a loud bam. Barely a second later, loud whirring and screechy noises sounded from the darkness. The Scraplets had thrown themselves on Breakout's corpse like gridwolves.

Starscream immediately assumed jet mode and took off before the Scraplets could realize he had returned. Breakout was a big bot. He would keep them busy for probably well over an hour.

It took mere minutes to return to the Energon bath in the open. Next he took the two halves of Shiftgear and returned to Tarn much quicker than with Breakout, since this load was much lighter. He hovered over the chasm and could still hear the Scraplets feasting on Breakout.

Starscream let go of the two halves of Shiftgear at the same time, hearing a pair of clanks as they hit the bottom, and assumedly Breakout too. The Scraplets emitting even louder, excited whirring and screechy noises now, having received more food.

Starscream reverted back to jet mode and returned to the bodies, assumed bot mode and picked up the remains of Beatup, the only bot who was whole. It took about as long time to get back to Tarn as with Shiftgear, though slightly slower because Starscream was beginning to grow tired. He had to get this done with soon so he could return to his camp and get some rest.

Starscream hovered over the noisy chasm and dumped Beatup's body into the darkness. The Scraplets' increased excitement was audible, and Starscream promptly left in jet mode again.

He returned to the open where only two corpses remained; Tinker and Paralax. As well as something else. Before he had made off with the bodies for the Scraplets, Starscream had taken the liberty of emptying the bots' cabins and cockpits for items. He had left all the items in a pile, in which there were a few Energon cubes, several platinum-pears and some medical supplies. Bandages, a blowtorch and even nanite patches. Those would be useful later.

Starscream looked down at the remains of Tinker and Paralax. He wasn't sure how long it had taken to dump the other bodies, nor how long he had been with the Scraplets or how long his fight with them had lasted. Not even how long he had been crying and screaming afterwards. But he was getting tired, and he wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible.

Instead of grabbing one of them, Starscream placed the two halves of Tinker on top of Paralax' body, along with the head. He then picked up Paralax behind the knee joints and shoulders, careful not to let the smaller parts fall off as he ascended to the air once again.

Starscream returned to Tarn and reached the Scraplet hive for hopefully the last time. He hovered above the darkness and stared down at Tinker and Paralax' remains. Like before, he felt empty. Cold. Sparkless. He had no problem leaving their bodies to the Scraplets like dumping trash in an incinerator. That was what he thought of them. Trash. Just like they had thought of him.

Yet he had made friends with this piece of trash. He still couldn't believe how easily he had been fooled. Perhaps his ambition wasn't the only thing that had been left behind on Trypticon Station.

"I have been naive," he whispered to himself. "Gullible. They were right after all. But no more. I must remember who I am. Starscream. The one who trusts no one. The one trusted by no one. The world may know me as a coward, a traitor, an opportunist. But I am more than that. There's more to this Seeker than meets the eye. I will show them all. Starscream is nobot's fool. Not anymore."

Starscream smiled as his gaze fell on Paralax' head, where the optics were open and dark, the mouth partly open in surprise.

"Thank you for reminding me of who I am, Paralax," Starscream whispered quietly. "I will never forget myself again."

Starscream let go of Paralax' body and watched it, the head and Tinker's halves fall into the darkness, to the waiting jaws of the Scraplets. He lingered for a few seconds longer.

"Goodbye, traitors," Starscream uttered softly and reverted to jet mode. "I will never forget you. As much as I want to."

Starscream took off and left Tarn for hopefully the last time. Before he could return to his own camp, he had to take care of one last thing.

He returned to the area where he had killed his former comrades and assumed bot mode. He walked over to the pile of objects. There were six Energon cubes, a bunch of platinum-pears, a blowtorch, three bundles of bandages and four packs of nanite patches. It wasn't much, but it was more than Starscream had been used to for the past few weeks. It was still too much to carry all at once.

As he already had Energon back in the camp, Starscream instead decided to pack himself with the medical supplies and metalo-fruits first. He would come back for the cubes later, if they were still there.

Having loaded himself, he reverted back to jet mode and took off into the sky once again. All that transforming in his current condition was really taking it out of him, but he had to endure a bit longer.

After several minutes, he finally made it back to the city where his camp was situated in. He found his camp and assumed bot mode. He let out a sigh of relief as he saw that everything was as he had left it. Several Energon cubes stacked, the datapads he had found, as well as a few platinum-pears, titanimatoes and tungsten-beets, which he had apparently left behind after all. Luckily, none of them seemed to have rusted yet, so they were still edible. He would have to consume those first.

Starscream unloaded himself and put his new supplies in a seperate pile, to avoid mixing the new pears with the old ones. Afterwards, he left the city in jet mode once again to return to the other Energon cubes.

He touched down and assumed bot mode and started loading himself with three Energon cubes. He would have to return once again to take the rest. He gazed at the ground and noticed there was less Energon spilled than earlier. It seemed to be seeping into tiny crevices in the ground. Even Cybertron itself seemed keen on helping Starscream eliminate the evidence of what had happened here.

Starscream resumed jet mode and returned to his camp in minutes, unloaded the Energon cubes and stacked them on his own, resumed jet mode and left his city again to return to the other Energon cubes in minutes. He loaded himself with the remaining Energon cubes, feeling even more exhausted from all the transforming and everything else that had happened today. As he had fully loaded himself, he looked once again at the ground. The Energon stains were almost completely gone now. No one would know the path to the osmium forest now, nor have any idea that there had been an assault out in the open.

Starscream resumed jet mode and took several minutes to reach his camp, transforming back to bot mode for the last time that night, and unloaded the Energon cubes to stack on the others. He had more than a dozen cubes now. He didn't have enough meshetables or metalo-fruits for healing his wounds, but he would take care of that the next morning. Now, he needed to rest, but before that, he had to take care of his wounds.

He was still leaking, and he needed to prevent the wounds from getting infected. He grabbed the blowtorch and sat down to get to work. He had seen medics handle blowtorches to close wounds and attach new metal to the gaps to heal the armor. He didn't have any metal to attach, but perhaps eating metal would allow his armor to grow back in time. For now, he just had to stop the leaking.

He turned on the blowtorch and started melting the metal around the open wounds to close them. Most of them were Scraplet wounds and were easily taken care of, but the wounds on his back and wings were hard to reach. He would just have to do what he could and then hope the wounds he couldn't reach wouldn't get infected. Which fell ill in his mind. This was the sort of thing where an ally would have been helpful. Too bad it turned out he couldn't trust anyone.

"I can make it on my own," Starscream grunted as he tried to reach his wings. "I don't need anyone."

When he was done blowtorching his wings and back the best he could, he tried blowtorching the gaping wound in the side of his abdomen. It was pretty deep and leaking, but hopefully the armor would return as he consumed more metal over the next week or so. He'd rather not have scars all over his body, much less such a vulnerable one. Perhaps he would need to find higher quality metal for better healing.

After several minutes, Starscream managed to close the gaping wound on his side. He turned off the blowtorch as there were no more wounds for him to close that he could reach. Now he had to make sure they wouldn't pop back open right away and get infected.

Starscream took one of the three bundles of bandages and started wrapping himself up in them, mostly on his arms and his abdomen where large chunks of metal were missing. Those were the places where new metal had to grow back in and fill out the gaps. The rest of his body got covered in nanite patches, including his face where two Scraplets had latched on, but thankfully had not done too much damage. The nanites would help heal the more superficial wounds and leave the armor more or less as it was before. Doing that with the gaps would probably have left the scars as permanent.

After having covered himself in bandages and patches, Starscream took an Energon cube and some of the old platinum-pears, titanimatoes and tungsten-beets to consume at the same time. Normally he would eat one of each every day, though whenever he was wounded he would eat several of each every day, to speed up the healing process. Now he needed more than he had in the past.

He found the metalo-fruits and meshetables strangely tasteless. Even the Energon tasted more bland than normal. He got no enjoyment out of refueling this time.

He had done fine on his own during his first two weeks of solitude. Then he joined Paralax' group, and he started to feel happier and enjoyed himself more than he had before.

Now they were all gone. And Starscream was now even more alone than he had been before he joined them.

Suddenly his thoughts went to the gridwolves from two weeks ago. The surviving gridwolf must have felt the same way as Starscream felt right now. Grieving, lonely, hopeless. Clueless as to what to do now.

Starscream hated this mood. He didn't want to feel it again. He couldn't ally himself with any bots anymore. Not only because he had lost faith in his fellow Cybertronians, but because he couldn't handle having to go through all this hurt, grief and loneliness again.

He would get over it. Eventually. Until then, he just had to endure. Just like he had always endured. It was one of the things he was best at.

As he finished eating all the old platinum-pears, titanimatoes and tungsten-beets, as well as the single Energon cube, Starscream felt full. He put the empty cube aside. He would fill it up again at a later point.

Starscream laid down on the ground, laying on his right side, to spare his wings and the left side of his abdomen. He was exhausted. It had been a long and painful day. Hopefully tomorrow would be better.

He closed his eyes, barely even thinking a thought, and fell into recharge, not to wake up again until dawn the next morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cue "Me Against The World" by Simple Plan.


	7. Marauder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Extremely long chapter.  
> Starscream's not having much fun here.

The next morning, Starscream woke up, feeling a little better. Not much, but still something of an improvement.

He groaned as he rose to his legs and felt numb in his right arm. Normally when sleeping on his side, Starscream would switch on occasion to avoid this, but to spare the wounds in the left side of his abdomen, he stayed on his right throughout the night. It would go away in a while, but for now he felt pretty sore and worn all over.

Then he remembered what happened the previous day, and his shoulders slumped, along with his wings. He felt empty inside, unsure of what to do now. After a few minutes of staring into the ground, Starscream shook his head, trying to bring himself back to the present.

"Better check if my wounds have healed yet," Starscream muttered to himself.

He started by removing one of the nanite patches on his right upper arm. As the patch was peeled off, he saw that the superficial wound underneath had more or less healed throughout the night, thanks to the metalo-fruits, meshetables, Energon cube and long rest.

Afterwards Starscream began removing all the other nanite patches off his body, making sure every one of the wounds were healed and out of danger, including those on his face, which stung a bit as he removed them, but they felt healed enough. Now he was only covered in bandages on his arms, right leg, torso, wings and throat. They had to be checked too. Even though the blowtorch should have closed the wounds, they could still leak, hence the bandages. And keeping dirty bandages on the wounds wasn't good for healing.

He started unwrapping the bandages on his left arm, which had been badly wounded by the Scraplets. He cringed a bit as the metal bandage peeled off the surface of the wound. It had stopped leaking and was now covered by crusted Energon. It could probably still open easily, however, so he would have to put new bandages on.

He took one of the bandage rolls and wrapped his left arm in clean bandages, then closed it. Afterwards he did the same with his right arm, having been just as badly hurt as his left one.

Once his arms had been wrapped in clean bandages, Starscream sat down and unwrapped the bandages on his right leg, where a Scraplet had bitten onto his thruster and temporarily ceased his bot-mode flight. The damage was a bit harder than on the arms, but luckily not bad enough to prevent him from flying, and the wounds had somewhat healed as well. He threw the dirty bandages away and replaced them with clean ones.

Next Starscream carefully removed the bandages around his torso, sealing the large, gaping wound in the left side of his abdomen, where Tinker had bitten on with his huge Scrapmetal teeth. As he reached the surface, he held his breath as he seperated the bandage from the wound...

Like the others, the abdominal wound had stopped leaking, but it was still deep and practically still open. It still hurt pretty bad. It would take a lot more metal to fill in this wound.

Thinking about nothing but the first aid, Starscream threw the bandage away and carefully applied a new bandage to his torso. It took a few minutes before he had wrapped up the wound again and tied the bandage in a knot.

Next he decided to check the wound on his throat, where one Scraplet had latched on, though not for long before he had managed to pry it off and crush it in his hand. It had still leaked pretty badly, but thankfully the Scraplet had not damaged his voicebox.

Starscream very carefully undid his work with the bandage around his throat and cringed even harder as the bandage was peeled off the crusted Energon on his throat. He reached a hand up and felt on the wound, then looked at his hand. There were only a few crumbs of crusted Energon, but no wet stains. The wound had closed and more or less healed, though it was still about as bad off as his abdomen.

After carefully wrapping his throat in a clean bandage, Starscream at last brought his attention to his wings. They had been the hardest to wrap up, but he had made it work through a lot of effort, despite his fatigue the previous day. It was hard tending to his wings, but not impossible. Just really annoying.

Starscream released his wings from the bandages and saw to his relief that they had healed even more than the other bigger wounds. They weren't completely whole like before the Scraplet attack, but they were good enough that they would bear him in the air. Some more metalo-fruits and meshetables would fill in the metal and eventually they would fully heal. Probably.

Wings healed faster if the wounds they gained weren't major, like getting torn off or partly torn off. With minor wounds like these, they usually recovered faster in a few days with some Energon, and even faster with a supplement of metal, Starscream figured.

After putting a lot of effort into wrapping up his wings in new bandages, Starscream turned his attention to his pile of Energon cubes. He was hungry, but he couldn't fuel yet. He had plenty of Energon, but only a few fresh platinum-pears from yesterday, and no meshetables. He'd rather stay in his camp until he was healed up, especially with as much Energon as he had at the moment, but even with the Energon he didn't have the supplies to stay behind.

Having experienced how fast he healed when eating metal as well, he wanted more of it. Having only six pears to consume wasn't enough to heal him up quickly. He needed more meshetables, as well as more metalo-fruits. And to get that, he had to go out. Even in his current vulnerable condition.

Starscream didn't like the idea of going out in his condition, but the thought of gathering a huge supply of meshetables and metalo-fruits and then staying in his camp until he was fully healed was a nice thought. He just had to put in a little more effort, and then he could take a break. Unwind, recover, until he had to face the world and its cruelty again.

And right now, the day after having been betrayed by those he thought were his friends, he really needed some alone time, to gather his thoughts and not having to go through that sort of stress again anytime soon.

As such, Starscream rose back to his feet and took a deep breath before leaping into the air and activating his leg thrusters, blasting off into the sky and leaving his city ruins.

At first he was heading for the osmium forest, but the memory of the traitors almost reaching the forest affected him. Despite knowing no one else knew about the forest, he didn't feel safe enough to return to that particular forest just yet. He also didn't feel like going to the boron forest, as he remembered having shown Paralax that place as well. He didn't want any more reminders of those traitors for the time being. So instead, he decided to go north and explore a bit.

After avoiding an active city, Starscream eventually found another forest, located just at the foot of the Manganese Mountains. For the first time, Starscream recognized where he was, since first leaving Trypticon Station and fleeing to a random spot on Cybertron.

He was about to just fly over the mountains when something yellow caught his attention.

"Yellow?" Starscream muttered and circled the mountains to get back to the forest. "Could that mean...?"

To confirm his speculation, Starscream decided to touch down into the forest, in a glade some distance away from where he had seen something yellow. He landed on his feet and started walking, whilst looking from side to side, taking in his surroundings. It seemed to be a manganese-maple forest. Not surprising, given it was located at the foot of the Manganese Mountains themselves.

After a minute or two, Starscream came across a blue light. Another river, and it seemed to be leading somewhere. He decided to walk along it, in the direction where he was already going.

"Of all the natural metals in the world, there are only two that are a different color than gray," Starscream said to himself, having an idea what he had found. "Copper, which is red, and yellow being..."

Starscream reached another glade, a bigger one than the one he had landed in. As he got out from among the trees and bushes, he paused and stared ahead of him in wonder.

In front of him was a large Energon lake, which the river he had been following was connected to. In the middle of the lake was a small island on which a large golden tree was situated. Despite the distance, Starscream could clearly spot many round metalo-fruits hanging from the branches in hundreds.

"Gold," Starscream voiced breathlessly. "A golden apple tree... There are so few of them left, this is the first I've seen since leaving the Seekers. And there are so many fruits on it too..."

A small splash snapped Starscream out of his staring at the golden tree, and his gaze went to the lake itself. Whatever had made the splash was gone now, but he could see small ripples in the Energon from where it had been.

"Seems there's something alive down there," Starscream muttered to himself. "It would probably be a bad idea to try swimming across. Not like I'm a good swimmer anyway. Not many bots are."

Transforming to get across was too risky as well, since he was still pretty battered up and it was such a short distance. Plus, he was uncertain whether he could control his own speed in alternate mode in his current state. Plus his bandages could possibly tear open if he transformed.

"I could try using my leg-thrusters," Starscream speculated. "Although... it would probably be a bad idea too. I could accidentally hit the Energon and cause an explosion."

Starscream hummed, trying to think of an idea. He looked around. "Maybe I can find something to cross with. Like a fallen tree or something."

He decided to go with that idea and started searching the shore for something he could use. As he circled the long, circular shore, he found something else interesting. A bed of metalo-plants with long leaves sticking up from the ground stood out amongst the otherwise flat ground with only a little irongrass here and there.

"Looks like meshetables," Starscream theorized. "But what kind, I wonder?"

He decided to check them out and went over to one set of leaves. He grabbed around the leaves and pulled, first gently, then harder as the metalo-plant didn't give so easily. Without too much effort though, he uprooted the plant, which had a bunch of silvery white, thick yet narrow beet-like things with thin metallic roots at the bottom. Starscream let out a small gasp as he recognized the meshetable.

"Chromium-carrots," Starscream deduced. "One of the strongest natural metals in existence. Its hardness and strength competes with tungsten and titanium. This is quite a good find."

Starscream gazed between the chromium-carrots, the golden apple tree and the rest of the manganese-maple forest. He let out a small chuckle.

"How convenient for me to find a forest with two of the best metals for the frame. Someone must be guiding me, leading me to these wonderful places. Like I'm being controlled by an invisible hand..."

Starscream fell empty of thoughts for a moment while just staring down at the chromium-carrots. His good mood of finding the glade with its treasures was soon replaced by the memory of Paralax and the others from yesterday. The things they said rung in his head.

_What an idiot. Buying all our friendship junk and telling us all those dumb things about life and stuff. BORING!_

_Soon we'll be able to get all the Energon we could ask for._

_We didn't have to make you say anything. You just told us everything you knew. You even told us about the Energon river, metalo-fruits and meshetables..._

_I couldn't believe what a big gullible idiot we had reeled in._

_It's your fault Tarn is in ruin!_

_You're the real traitor in this world. You destroyed Tarn AND Vos! You killed both our peoples!_

_But sadly, we've had enough of you and your 'circle of life' scrap. Now YOU can join the circle of life and become scrap yourself._

_You killed him. You've doomed Cybertron now._

As the memory of the bots' words ran through his head, Starscream felt rage welling up in him again. As well as... sadness.

He didn't know why he felt sad thinking about those traitors. He didn't want to feel sad, yet he did.

He hated those bots. Yet they had been his friends for a week, and he had ended up liking them. Traitors or not, he had been friends with them, and now he had lost his friends and was once again alone. He no longer had anyone to share his knowledge with, nor these findings he had made.

He had no one to share these chromium-carrots or golden apples with. He only had himself.

Soon, his sadness overcame his rage and he felt his mood sinking deeply. He missed Paralax and the others. He missed the company. Despite their treachery, he missed them all and what they had given him.

A gentle breeze blew his way, and the slight coldness brought him back to attention. He shook his head, suppressing these thoughts and memories for the moment. He had more important things to take care of.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Starscream bent down and plucked more chromium carrots. He decided to take enough to last for a week, as chromium didn't oxidate easily. He tucked the carrots in his cockpit, making sure there was enough room for the golden apples.

"Right, I still haven't figured out how to get to the island," Starscream said as he closed his cockpit. "Better keep searching."

Starscream moved on along the shore, searching for anything that could be used. He found nothing, however, and soon he found himself having returned to the chromium-carrot bed. He sighed.

"Looks like there's nothing in this area to help me get across," Starscream muttered. "I could go back into the forest and search... but it's a big forest, and who knows how long it would take? It would almost be faster to just swim or wade across."

Starscream gazed out at the lake. While Cybertronians couldn't naturally swim, due to the lack of liquid seas on Cybertron, some bots did have some basic knowledge of the art of swimming. After all, Energon deposits used to be larger and deeper, and some species would have to develop the ability to swim to survive, such as alloygators and robo-fish. Cybertronians could learn to swim, but rumors said it wasn't easy.

With Energon being a thick substance as it was, however, it was possible for even heavy bots to float on it, whether due to buoyancy or the atomic mass of Energon itself. And Starscream was a quick learner. He could figure this out.

"Had this not been Energon, I could have used my thrusters to propel me forward," Starscream mused as he stood by the edge of the shore, his feet inches away from the Energon. "But since it is, the action would cause the lake to explode. I can't risk that."

Starscream hesitated and thought about his options. He could either go into the forest and search for a fallen tree or something to get him across, use his thrusters to fly himself over the lake but risk setting the Energon ablaze, or jump out and attempt to swim across. Neither option fell well with him.

"Screw it, I'm just going to go for it," Starscream decided and stepped into the Energon.

At first he just waded with Energon to his ankle struts, as the bottom closest to the shore wasn't far from the surface. But after just a few mechanometers, the bottom suddenly seemed to vanish, and Starscream plopped into the Energon with his entire body. He yelped in surprise before falling silent as his systems were flooded with Energon. It wasn't too bad since it was Energon, but the sudden feeling of his internal systems being full startled him, and he couldn't breathe for ventilation.

Luckily Cybertronians didn't need to breathe any specific type of gas to survive, they only needed the air for ventilation and keeping their insides from overheating. Unfortunately, having his internal systems flooded with Energon made him even heavier than he already was, making it hard for him to stay afloat, let alone get back to the surface. Soon, he found himself planting his feet on the bottom of the lake, several mechanometers from the surface.

Finding it uncomfortable and annoying with the substance in his internal systems, Starscream initiated a purging reflex, turning on his inner fans and quickly disposing of most of the Energon with the remaining air trapped in his ventilation system. Afterwards he quickly shut his mouth and other passages to his inner works to prevent more from entering. There was still Energon inside, but it was little enough that he could handle it, plus there wasn't any more trapped air in his systems to purge the rest. He would have to endure it until he reached the shore.

Starscream started walking across the bottom, finding his movements slowed greatly due to the density of the Energon around him, but also felt himself slightly lighter due to his loosened weight. The Energon was only slightly clear, enough that he could see a school of robo-minnow two or three mechanometers away from him, but further than five mechanometers he could see nothing but bright blue. Due to Energon's natural glow, the bottom of rivers and lakes were never dark, but the density alone made it hard to find one's way around in the substance.

After several minutes of slow walking, Starscream hit a wall. Literally. One moment there was nothing but blue, the next moment, a solid wall appeared right in front of him, and he bumped his forehead into it. He would swear if it wasn't for keeping his mouth shut to keep the Energon around him from entering his systems again.

 _Must be the island,_ Starscream thought as he felt on the wall. _It's a bit steep though. Who designed this lake with such a drop anyway?!_

Starscream frowned as he looked up the wall, which faded about five mechanometers up. He didn't think the lake was deeper than six or seven mechanometers though. It wouldn't be a long climb.

 _Guess I better get going,_ Starscream thought and latched his stubby claws into the wall. _I really need to file these claws._

Despite his own weight, the Energon allowed him some buoyancy, which made it easier for him to lift himself from the bottom and climb upwards. With every stretch and pull, he saw more of the top, and soon he could see what seemed to be the surface, brighter than the Energon below him.

 _Almost there,_ Starscream thought to himself in excitement. _Just a little more..._

He felt the Energon behind him brush against his back, catching his attention. Starscream looked behind but saw nothing.

 _I know I felt something just now,_ Starscream thought, then remembered something. _Maybe it's the one who made that splash earlier? I hope it's not piranacons..._

Technically, piranacons did not exist on Cybertron, though since the Quintessons' invasion of the planet - and to the extent, their departure - sights and attacks of piranacons in certain Energon deposits and other liquid bodies had been rumored to have taken place. There wasn't much aquatic life on Cybertron, however, and piranacons originally came from the planet Aquatron, from which the Quintessons had probably brought the beasts.

Despite the very low possibility of piranacons existing on Cybertron, Starscream was still worried, as he was alone, wounded and vulnerable in this lake.

He did not get to speculate for much longer, however, as the owner of the previous movement soon revealed itself.

Suddenly, something clamped around Starscream's torso, and something sharp pierced into the wound on the left side of his abdomen. Starscream stopped himself from screaming by the pain, instead twisting and turning, trying to see what had caught onto him.

What had caught hold of him was nothing less but a huge alloygator, black on the top and green on the underside, along with a pair of mean-looking red eyes. Its jaws was one of the strongest of all mechanimals on Cybertron, with the ability to break a bot like Starscream in half with little effort.

Realizing he was in deep trouble, Starscream reacted quickly and folded his hands together, striking the alloygator on the head before it could initiate its famous 'death roll'. The alloygator was taken aback by the strike and released Starscream from its jaws.

Rather than trying to get away, Starscream quickly grabbed either side of the alloygator's head and pulled himself back, until his legs were clamped around the beast's thick body. Now the alloygator couldn't snap its jaws at him again, however it was far from harmless.

As the alloygator regained its senses and realized Starscream was on its back, it started twisting from side to side in rapid movements, trying to shake him off. Starscream wrapped both arms around the alloygator's head for better grip as it started rolling. At first it was slow, but then it got faster and stronger, and it became harder to hold on. Starscream put all his effort into just holding on, not even being able to draw one of his swords to fight back.

After several minutes of rapid, dizzying rolling, the alloygator seemed to realize Starscream wouldn't go down so easily. It abruptly stopped the rolling, almost throwing Starscream off if he wasn't clinging on to it with all his strength. Afterwards it shot forward in incredible speed through the Energon, like a torpedo, and again Starscream had to hold on with everything he had to not be thrown off.

Suddenly, the alloygator broke through the surface of the lake and leapt through the air, at which point gravity took its hold on both of them. The alloygator plumped down onto the shore of the island, and the hard impact caused Starscream to lose his grip around its head. He fell off the beast and landed on his back.

Still pumped by adrenaline, Starscream quickly lifted himself back on his feet before the alloygator started moving its stubby legs forward. Before the beast could get to him, Starscream ran straight for the golden tree, leapt onto the trunk and quickly climbed up, just in time to avoid getting one of his feet chomped off by the alloygator.

Starscream reached the crown and hauled himself all the way up. He gazed down at the angry alloygator glaring up at him with its tiny red eyes, hissing loudly. Starscream hissed back, and the two stared the other in the eyes. After about a minute of staring, the alloygator gave up and retreated back into the lake, not finding Starscream worth it. Starscream sighed as the alloygator disappeared from his sight.

Starscream settled into the crown and looked around. It was first now that he noticed how large the tree really was. It was just big enough that the crown could support his size and weight, perhaps a second bot as well. Everything around him was glistering yellow and sparkling from the reflections of the sunlight. Everything was bright, almost glowing. Between some of the cracks and crevices, Starscream could faintly spot glowing cyan, the Energon flowing through the metalo-tree's veins... if trees had veins, that was. Starscream didn't remember if he knew or not. It had been a long time since his scientific days, and much of it was hidden away in the back of his head.

Starscream's attention abandoned the Energon veins, instead focusing on the fruits hanging from some of the branches. Golden apples. Supposedly the best source of precious metal, the king of precious metals, even.

"Suppose I will have to see if you are as good as I read about you," Starscream said to the nearest fruit and plucked it from its branch. It popped off rather easily, unlike the chromium-carrots.

Starscream stared at the smooth, golden surface of the apple for a long minute, just admiring the beauty of it. Gold was such a unique metal. It was the only metal with a yellow color, one of only two metals having different colors than grey. It was the king of precious metals, immune to oxidation and thus never rusted. Unlike any other metalo-fruit or meshetable, this golden apple could last forever, never expiring, much like Energon itself.

But was it any good? It had many good properties, and certainly it contained a lot of antioxidants and boosted the immune system better than any other precious or weak metal. But Starscream wasn't sure how committed he would be to this fruit if it didn't taste good.

Starscream took a deep breath before sinking his teeth into the golden skin. And took a bite. And chewed. With his eyes closed.

And immediately opened them again. And then slowly closed them again.

Starscream hummed. It was delicious. Sweet, sour and juicy. The skin was hard and the mesh was firm, but it crunched nicely, and the Energon inside was cool and refreshing.

Starscream swallowed the mesh and sighed. "I am definitely coming here again," he said to himself and gazed down at the apple. "Maybe even replace the platinum-pears with this. I wonder what the chromium-carrots taste like..."

Starscream brought out a carrot from his cockpit and gazed at its details for a moment before taking a bite of the tip. It wasn't as juicy as the apple, but it was also sweet, with a slight bitterness at the end. It crunched louder than the apple, which was oddly satisfying, so he took another bite. Then another, and another, until he had eaten the entire carrot. He looked down at the leafy tip and smiled.

"Yes, I will definitely return to this place from now on," Starscream decided and tossed the leaves into the lake, making a small splash.

Starscream leaned back against one of the thicker branches as he continued munching on the golden apple, making sure to eat around the core like he did with the platinum-pears and titanimatoes. In the end he didn't consume much of the whole apple, but he had eaten about half of its entire mass, it seemed.

As he finished with the apple, he threw the core into the lake as well, making another splash. Now that he looked down again, he noticed there was no longer just one, but _three_ alloygators in the lake. The sight made him gulp and widen his eyes in concern. Had the other two reached him when the first one had caught him, he probably would not have made it out of the lake alive.

"I better be careful around here," Starscream mused to himself. "Once my flying skills return to normal, perhaps it will be easier getting to this tree and out again. For now though, I should probably stock up on these things while I'm here."

As such, Starscream began climbing around the crown and plucked several golden apples, mostly those he could easily reach from the trunk. He ended up plucking and storing ten golden apples in his cockpit, along with his now six chromium carrots, enough to last him well over a week.

He gazed around for any more apples, when suddenly his attention fell on a particularly large apple, dangling from a thin branch outside of the crown. Starscream stared at the apple in wonder. It was probably two or even three times larger than the one he had just eaten, as well as most of the others he had plucked. He still felt hungry, and that apple looked very inviting and appetizing...

A sound brought him out of his trance, and he looked down into the lake. The three alloygators were slowly swimming around at the surface, staring up at him, almost as if they were waiting for him to jump in. He looked back at the branch. It was pretty thin, probably not strong enough to hold his weight. But that golden apple... it was the apple of his eye.

"This is a really bad idea," Starscream said to himself. "But... but I must have that apple!"

Starscream shook his head and made his decision. He reached for the branch with the large apple on it, carefully lifting his leg out and around the branch to strap himself fast. Both legs clamped around the round branch, both hands holding firmly on the golden bark ahead.

Starscream's gaze went down involuntarily. He didn't have a fear of heights or falling, but being on such a thin round branch with an alloygator-infested lake underneath him was perhaps a slight bit outside of his comfortzone. He had to be very careful here. He couldn't turn back now either, as that would likely result in him falling. Suddenly he wondered how he was supposed to get back to safety once he got that perfect apple.

"Stupid," Starscream hissed at himself. "Should have thought this through. Well, nothing to lose now. Better move forward."

Slowly, carefully, Starscream pulled himself forward, one arm at a time, while his legs held tightly around the branch. As he got closer to the apple, the branch got thinner and thinner, and his legs were soon loose around the branch. As he was a mere mechanometer from the apple, the branch creaked eerily, as if giving him a warning. Starscream gulped.

"No turning back," he whispered to himself. "Almost there..."

As he was half a mechanometer from the golden apple, he reached forward with his right arm. His fingetips brushed the golden fruit.

The movement made him lose balance for a second, and he immediately pulled his arm back to regain balance. He stayed on the branch, but the movement caused him to slide underneath the branch, now hanging upside-down. Starscream let out a squeak of surprise and concern at his new position. Out of the corner of his optic, he could spot the alloygators gathering around underneath him, the rattling hisses reaching his audio receptors.

"To go this far for one apple," Starscream chuckled nervously, forcing his gaze back on the golden apple in front of him, upside-down in his sight.

Starscream wormed a little forward, earning another alarming creaking from the branch, but Starscream ignored it. Despite gold being a weak metal, this tree was made of living metal, gold reinforced with Energon, which made it stronger than raw, natural gold. It would hold.

Or, he believed it would hold. Until he reached up and grabbed hold of the huge golden apple and pulled. It popped off easily, like the others, though needing a bit more force because of its size.

As the apple popped off, Starscream smiled in triumph.

The branch creaked loudly, followed by a snap. Starscream's smile vanished.

A loud crack and crunch sounded, and suddenly Starscream was pulled down by gravity as the branch broke off the trunk. He yelped as he fell into the lake, the golden apple falling from his hand.

A loud splash lured in the alloygators.

Starscream sprung to the surface and struggled to keep himself afloat, now with his cockpit full of heavy golden apples and chromium-carrots. He leapt to the side, reaching out for the shore of the island.

One of the alloygators bit onto his left leg as he pulled himself to the shore. He screamed in pain but threw himself onto the shore, pulling the alloygator with him. This one was smaller than the other two, a young one, probably, but its jaws were still strong enough to break off Starscream's leg at any moment.

The two larger alloygators remained in the lake as Starscream pulled the smaller one onto land. He crawled forward and whined as the alloygator started rolling around, leg still in its jaws, trying to twist it off his frame.

Panicking, Starscream reached back and pulled out one of his swords. He rolled onto his back in the same direction as the alloygator was rolling. He sat up quickly.

In a swift movement, Starscream struck the sword down through the alloygator's head, just as it exposed its underside to him. The blade cut through its lower jaw and pierced through its skull, instantly killing it.

As the alloygator went stiff, the grip on Starscream's leg loosened, though he still had to pry the teeth off stuck in his armor, which was a painful process. As his leg was freed, Starscream pulled the sword out of the alloygator's head, and he rose to his legs, the left one in a limp. It had received a pretty bad wound, but it still hung onto the rest of his leg and would heal in time. With lots of Energon and metal, that was.

Starscream gasped and stared at the alloygator lying with its head upside-down, while the rest of its body was partly on the side and on the front, in the middle of a roll.

After a moment of staring at the dead alloygator, Starscream's gaze fell on the two larger ones out in the lake. Their expressions were unreadable, though they seemed to stare intently at the dead youngster. He heard a low rattle coming from the beasts.

Starscream took in a deep breath and spread his wings out widely, straightening his back to make himself look bigger. He hissed back at the alloygators as he brought forth his two swords, pointing at them. The message was clear. The alloygators turned tail and swam towards the river leading away from the lake, soon disappearing under the surface. Starscream was definitely not worth it.

Starscream let out another sigh of relief. He gazed back down at the dead alloygator. The sight reminded him of the gridwolf he killed about a week ago, as well as the turbofox with a kit missing. Had this small alloygator perhaps been related to the two larger ones? Their offspring, maybe? Or were they all strangers?

"Such a waste," Starscream said and flipped the body onto its back, exposing its underside. "The big one was strong. You could have turned out just as powerful as him."

Starscream didn't put the swords away just yet, nor did he try to leave immediately. His gaze remained on the dead alloygator for a long time. Memories of the turbofox leaping out and catching a petro-rabbit, followed by its consumption, raced through his mind. Turbofoxes were so small yet so agile and strong, able to kill Cybertronians larger than himself. Alloygators about the same size as himself could probably down even Megatron with little trouble.

"Mechanimals are powerful," Starscream whispered in thought. "Especially the predators, it seems. But why? Could it be... because they are predators?"

The thought of consuming mechanimals had crossed his mind earlier, but back then he had cast it aside out of disgust. But now, seeing how powerful these predators were compared to the herbivores and Cybertronians themselves...

Starscream knelt down and put one sword on the ground, then shifted the other sword so it was pointing down from his fist. He held a hand on the alloygator's neck and brought the blade to its green belly just below the left leg. With a bit of pressure, the blade cut through the softer green metal, and Starscream carved out a small piece of mesh, dripping with blue Energon as he held it between his digits.

Starscream hesitated for a while, just staring at the small piece of green mesh stained with Energon. He sighed and just went for it, taking a small bite of the chunk.

The mesh broke from the rest of the chunk with ease, and it crunched and squished a bit as he chewed it with his teeth. At first he cringed at the feel and thought of the tough mesh, but after having it in his mouth for a while, his flavory sensors were met by an unexpected sweetness, laced with slight spiciness and savory. It was also a bit juicy thanks to the Energon, and all in all, it tasted amazing.

Starscream hummed and swallowed the mesh. "I've never tasted anything like this before," he said quietly and kept his eyes closed to savor the taste. "It's so delicious... No wonder some mechanimals hunt instead of gathering."

Starscream opened his eyes again and immediately ate through the rest of the chunk, as he was still hungry. While eating, he suddenly remembered how he got into this position in the first place, and looked around. He couldn't spot the large golden apple he had tried to get to.

"Must have fallen into the lake," Starscream assumed bitterly. "Such a waste of a good golden apple. Well, at least I got _something_ out of this."

As he finished eating, he put both his swords on his back but stayed kneeling for a bit. He grabbed hold around the small alloygator's body, then rose to his feet, huffing a bit by the weight of the beast. It was a good thing this was a small one; had it been the big one that first attacked him, he might not have been able to lift it up, let alone fly away with it.

Despite still being close to the Energon, Starscream decided to take a risk and activated his thrusters, feeling his left leg strained and a burning sensation coursed through it. Despite the pain, Starscream put enough power in to lift himself from the ground with his heavy load of gold, chromium and alloygator. He managed to avoid hitting the lake, and he ascended into the sky above the forest, then took off and left the forest, making sure to note its location in his processor for future reference.

Flying via bot mode was slower than flying via jet mode, but it was even slower when you had your cockpit filled with heavy gold and your arms full of a heavy albeit small alloygator. As such, it took about half an hour for Starscream to return to his camp, all while his left leg and wounded torso burned with pain. As soon as he landed, he tossed the alloygator on the ground and sat down to rest for a while.

Before doing anything else, Starscream first got the medical supplies to take care of the new wound on his leg, as well as the opened wound on his torso, closing them with the blowtorch and then wrapping them up in bandages. He sighed at his mangled body.

"At least now I've got enough supplies to stay and heal up," Starscream said, looking around at the alloygator, deposited golden apples and chromium-carrots, as well as the remaining six platinum-pears and fourteen Energon cubes already in his camp. He leaned back against the wall and shut his eyes. "Perhaps a stasis-nap would be a good idea. I'll take care of things later."

* * *

A few hours later in the early evening, Starscream decided he had rested enough and woke from his stasis-nap, still hungry as all he had eaten in the late morning was a single golden apple, a chromium-carrot and a small chunk of alloygator mesh. Now that he had stocked up on supplies, it was time for a real feast.

Before he got started on the metalo-fruits, meshetables and Energon, he decided to try more of the alloygator, seeing as it was strangely delicious. He wondered if every part of the alloygator tasted just as good or if they tasted different depending on the area. Having already tried the belly, he decided to carve a piece of the front left leg.

The leg was tougher than the belly, but less flaky and juicier. Afterwards he tried a piece from the throat, which was about as soft and juicy as the belly, though like the leg it was also less flaky. He tried a piece of the right hind leg, which was about the same as the front leg, though a little flakier.

He also decided to try a piece of the tail and cut the tip off. It was tough on the outside and crunchy, but not flaky, and under the armor the mesh was tender and juicy, and packed with even more flavor than the other body parts he had tried so far. It was incredibly delicious and satisfying to chew.

"I think I just found my favorite body part," Starscream said with a smile as he ate through the rest of the tail tip. "I wonder what other mechanimals taste like..."

He hadn't eaten much of the alloygator yet, just taken a few bits and pieces of several areas to test how the mesh tastes in different parts of the body on the outside. Now though, he was starting to wonder, what did it taste like on the _inside_?

Curious, Starscream cut into the alloygator's underside until he could open up its belly and look inside it, gazing at all the different organs. The fuel tank, the ventilation chambers, the voicebox, the transformation cog, the metal converter, the gestation chamber, and the Spark chamber, with a black extinguished Spark inside. All mechanimals had a transformation cog, but only some were able to transform, usually into vehicles or strange objects, such as petro-rabbits turning into spheres and singlehorns turning into rockets. Starscream was unsure if alloygators could transform or into what.

Looking at all these bio-mechanisms, Starscream was unsure which one to try out first. He decided for the Spark, as it seemed like an obvious first choice. He wasn't sure if eating the organs was actually a good idea or if it was bad, but he at least wanted to find out.

He plucked the small black Spark from the chamber and held it in his right hand. It was cold, just like the rest of the alloygator now was, hours after its death. It was firm but would probably break easily if he squeezed a bit harder.

Starscream sighed and brought the Spark to his mouth, sinking his teeth into it. The Spark was softer than he expected, and no cracks were made as he took a bite from it, much like sodium soil. He closed his eyes to focus on the taste and the consistence of the Spark.

The taste was... indescribable. There were no words for it.

He hadn't thought he would experience anything more delicious than an alloygator tail. Yet this Spark...

"How can this be..." Starscream said in confusion as he swallowed the piece and opened his eyes. "...so delicious? A Spark. The thing that keeps us alive. The culmination of our being. The thing that pumps Energon through our bodies. It's... I didn't know... I never expected..."

It was too delicious for mere words. It was so energizing, so refreshing, so strengthening. It was all sorts of flavors, some strong, some faint, it was firm yet soft, tough yet tender, dry yet juicy, flaky and crunchy yet smooth. It was nothing like he thought would possibly exist. The deliciousness and consistency of this Spark almost broke the laws of physics, that's how incredible it was.

Starscream immediately dug his teeth into the rest of the Spark and started munching, trying to savor the incredible taste and feel of it. It was gone within barely a minute. The Spark alone made him feel as if he could go several days without anything else, including Energon. Despite this, he did not feel completely full yet, and he had enough space left in his tank for a few metalo-fruits and meshetables, probably an Energon cube, along with testing out the other organs.

Since the Spark was so delicious, Starscream decided to try the fuel tank next, as it was likely also filled with Energon and various metals from the alloygator's last meal. He plucked the tank and studied its odd oval shape and smooth, solid surface.

Without hesitation this time, he took a bite from the tank. And cringed.

Barely had the mesh been in his mouth for more than a few seconds before he spat it out. It was the complete opposite of what the Spark had tasted like: sour, extremely bitter and with a bit of acid slightly corroding his mouth. The acid normally helped with the processing of Energon in the tank, before it was sent to the Spark chamber to be pumped out into the various organs and body parts for energy. The fuel tank itself was definitely not consumable.

With a bad taste in his mouth, Starscream threw the rest of the fuel tank away into the ruins. "Ugh, I'll never get that taste out of my flavory sensors. Maybe this was a mistake."

In attempt to drown the taste from the fuel tank, Starscream simply took a couple of the platinum-pears, golden apples and chromium-carrots and ate them right away, as well as a cube of Energon. He did not want to risk purging his own tank and lose all he had just consumed, simply because of his own curiosity.

After stuffing himself with metal and Energon, Starscream decided to close up the alloygator and wait with testing the rest of the organs later. He didn't know how long a mechanimal carcass would last before rusting, so he decided he would test the rest of the organs the next day, and afterwards just focus on eating the mesh.

After a long night's sleep, Starscream woke up and changed his bandages and removed the rest of the nanite patches before getting on to testing the organs first.

He opened the wound on the alloygator's belly again and decided to try out the gestation chamber next, which was just as disgusting as the fuel tank. He threw it away and plucked one of the two ventilation chambers beside the now empty Spark chamber. It didn't taste as bad as the other two organs, but it was still too bitter to eat, so he threw both ventilation chambers away. Next he tried the metal converter, which normally stored consumed metal processed from the fuel tank, to later be used for healing or growing. It was way too sour to be considered edible, so it was discarded into the ruins as well.

Afterwards he tried the T-Cog, which was way too flaky and bland in taste to be worth it, so it too was thrown away. Afterwards he decided to move further up and try the voicebox, but it was no good either. He had tried almost every organ in the alloygator's body, and so far only the Spark had been any good. There was still one organ left he hadn't tried yet though. The brain.

The torso empty of organs, Starscream simply flipped the alloygator onto its underside, thus being able to access the thick black armor on the top. He found the crevice between the head and the torso to allow the beast movement, and he stuck one of his swords into it, in attempt to seperate the armor from the mesh. As he had carved the armor on the head away, exposing its skull, he cut open its cranial chamber to expose the brain module.

With a heavy sigh, Starscream plucked the brain from the skull and held it in one hand. Having experienced all the other organs, he wasn't too confident with this one either. After some hesitation, he brought the curly, edgy brain to his mouth and took a bite.

He cringed very hard at the flaky, dry, tasteless metal. After mere five seconds, he spat it out and tossed the brain away and hissed in annoyance.

"I can't believe I just wasted my time on such stupid, disgusting things," he snarled to himself. "It would seem only the Spark is worth consuming. I suppose it makes sense, since it is the organ that keeps a bot alive and functional. But why the Pit did the others have to be so _nauseating_?!"

Starscream let out a heavy sigh. At least now he had tried all the organs and concluded only the Spark was worth eating. Now he could once again focus on the mesh of the alloygator. He did not feel particularly hungry now though, having experienced all these disgusting flavors, so he decided to wait a bit before eating.

While he waited, he read some of the datapads he had. He had already read all of them once, and some of them even twice, but nonetheless he read them again because he had nothing else to do at the moment.

After a few hours of reading, he finally felt hunger lurking in his tank and put down the biology datapad he was reading. He turned to the alloygator and ended up eating an entire leg, relieved to finally get a good taste in his mouth. He supplemented with a golden apple, a platinum-pear and a chromium-carrot, as well as an Energon cube. Once having finished eating, he returned to his reading.

Later in the evening, he still felt a bit hungry and decided to eat another alloygator leg before going to sleep. The following morning, he changed his bandages again, happy to see the older wounds from the Scraplets had now healed, though the wounds on his torso and left leg still needed some time to heal. As such, he only applied new bandages to those two areas.

After taking care of the wounds, Starscream went back to eating parts of the alloygator, as well as one of each of the metalo-fruits and meshetables he had, eating the last platinum-pears available at the moment. He ended up eating two legs right away, though didn't consume any cube yet. Even though he was injured, he felt hungry much faster than normal. Before leaving Trypticon Station, he would only refuel on a single Energon cube about twice or thrice a week, sometimes once a week if Energon supplies were getting low. During peacetime it was normal to consume Energon every day, in slightly smaller doses than bots did nowadays. During wartime, it was more beneficial to faste for a week or longer, to make the Energon last longer.

Starscream, like most other bots during the war, was used to fasting and could normally live without Energon for a week or longer. But since changing his life style a few weeks ago, it had become harder to faste, especially with how often he got himself injured and thus needed more fuel to heal. Even so, he felt unnaturally hungry every day. He wondered if it had anything to do with his new diet of metal as well, if getting used to consume a number of metal per day had become integrated into his body's routines. Was metal consumption addicting? Or was he simply losing his ability to faste?

After eating, he started reading once again, but by late afternoon, he got tired of reading. He was tired of sitting still all the time and not getting out and moving his body. He missed flying, but he would be able to do that safely again the next day, probably. But he couldn't wait until then to move. So instead, he put down the datapad, got up and left his camp, deciding to patrol the city on foot.

As he walked among the ruins, he took another look around. The city was in complete devastation, as if some great disaster had hit it, and not just a result of war. It wasn't the same as some of the warfaring cities like Kaon or Iacon, with plenty of tall buildings still standing. This city was almost flat, as if almost everything had been vaporized by something. It looked worse off than even Tarn, which had also only a few tall buildings left standing, due to bombing. Had this city also been bombed, perhaps?

"I wish I knew which city this is," Starscream said quietly as he gazed at his surroundings. "But I suppose it doesn't matter. As long as it can provide cover for me, I don't care what it used to be. There's no one else here anyway."

Starscream ended up watching the sunset at early evening, thanks to the flatness of the ruins. It was beautiful, but at the same time it brought a sense of sadness in Starscream. He wasn't sure why. He ended up thinking about Paralax and the others again. Why did he feel so guilty about killing them, about losing them? It was all their fault, not his. They were the traitors, not him.

"Did they have to die?" he asked quietly into the falling darkness. "Did I really have to kill them? Would they really have killed the mechanimals of the forest if I had not? Did I kill a bunch of bots for no reason?"

Starscream stopped for a moment to think further about his actions and how he felt about everything. He snorted and shook his head.

"No, I did the right thing," he protested against himself. "They said it themselves. They only used me, they were going to eliminate the forest's residents. They were murderers, bandits, Marauders. I did what was necessary. I protected the forest, and I protected myself. If I kept them alive, the forest would only die and others would be terminated by them as well."

Starscream's gaze rose from the ground to the sky, where the last light of Hadeen disappeared below the horizon, and where the first stars began twinkling.

"I do not live in society anymore," he reminded himself. "I am an outcast. I make my own rules now to survive. I can do whatever I want or need. Ethics don't matter. Morale doesn't matter. I will do what I have to. What happens to anyone else doesn't matter. All that matters is that _I_ survive. Everyone else can go to the Pits."

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, Starscream felt himself filled with determination. As night began replacing dusk, he decided he had walked enough and turned back to return to his camp.

When he returned, he decided to take some of the alloygator's tail and an Energon cube to eat before settling down for the night. His wounds on the left leg and torso were almost fully healed, probably thanks to all the metal he had eaten lately, as well as the Energon. Tomorrow, if the wounds were healed well enough, he could loose the bandages altogether and go for a fly again.

With that exciting thought in mind, Starscream laid on his side, closed his eyes and went into another night of peaceful recharge.

That is... until a few minutes past midnight.

Starscream slept sound as always when suddenly a strange sound woke him up.

"Hey look, there's a lot of Energon here."

He opened his eyes into slits. He felt his Spark leap and a rush in his tanks as he spotted three bots approaching him in his camp.

"Wha-" he gasped.

Barely had Starscream registered what was happening before he rose to his legs. The bots yelled, and one of them punched him in the face, then the abdomen, bringing him back onto the ground. He tried getting up, but one of the bot kicked him hard in the back of his head. He hacked and went stiff, feeling his consciousness fading as his vision began blurring.

" _So what do we do with this guy?_ "

" _I say we kill 'em._ "

Starscream's hearing began failing, and his blurry vision became darker, despite fighting to stay conscious.

After several long seconds, his consciousness slipped and he fell into the darkness.

* * *

After an uncertain amount of time, Starscream felt his consciousness slowly returning. He felt very tired and had a hard time opening his optics. He tried, but his energy level was low and his consciousness was still heavily impaired from the attack. As time passed, however, he became more aware of the fact that he was not dead, and as he gradually became more aware, his senses began returning to him as well.

He heard muffled voices talking together. He had a bad taste in his mouth from spilled Energon. He felt something hard binding his wrists together on his back. He felt himself sitting up with his legs spread out, leaning his back against a wall. He caught a faint scent of charred metal.

Starscream opened his eyes into slits and watched his blurry vision become clearer and sharper as he blinked a few times. As his vision became clear enough, he could make out six... maybe seven bots, sitting around a fire, above which was the alloygator he had killed, getting charred by the flames. He noticed the surrounding bots were chewing on some metal, and that the alloygator was missing more metal than last he checked.

They were eating his alloygator. They were _cooking_ it. The whole scene seemed strange to Starscream. Then he remembered what happened and looked from side to side. He was bound, captured, but still alive.

His gaze went back to the bots at the fire. There did seem to be seven of them, two Fliers, four Grounders, two of them big and two of them sleek, and one Mini-Con. As he focused on the Mini-Con, he recognized it as a Cyclone, a black one with purple detailing, seemingly with pink eyes. It had the generic Cyclone model, with the semi-sphere on its head, four legs and a pink sphere on its lavender torso.

One of the two Fliers seemed to sport feathery wings, as if he turned into a beast rather than a jet and was white and red, while the other seemed to be a copter-bot in blue and green. One of the two heavy bots was gray and black and seemed to turn into a tank, while the other was red and gray, seemingly a truck-bot. One of the sleek Grounders was dark and light blue, while the other was pink and black, both seeming to turn into generic cars. The beasty Flier had yellow eyes while the copter-bot had blue eyes, both heavy bots had red eyes, while the sleek blue Grounder seemed to have green eyes and the pink one white eyes.

Starscream couldn't make out much about these bots other than their color-schemes and builds. He was now more focused on their resources; behind them, he saw a pile consisting of golden apples and chromium-carrots, as well as a pile of medical supplies, weapons, datapads, devices and other miscellaneous. Their atmosphere was calm yet joyous as they feasted on the alloygator Starscream had caught and killed.

They were Marauders. Starscream realized it as the facts and signs went through his head and he remembered what Paralax had told him. They had raided his camp at night, knocked him unconscious and captured him.

 _But why?_ he thought confused. _Why did they keep me alive? Why didn't they kill me? What do they want with me?_

He was about to get his answer soon, for as he studied the bots in front of him, the Cyclone took notice of his awakening and blurted out some illegible noises accompanied by a claw pointing at the Seeker wildly. The bots gazed from the Cyclone to Starscream and now too saw that he was watching them. The sleek pink and black one with white optics rose up and walked over to Starscream with a smile on his face.

"Seems you're right, Haze," the bot said, apparently directed to the Cyclone. "The prisoner _is_ awake."

Starscream gazed confused between the pink bot and the Cyclone. Did the bot understand the Cyclone's language? Or did he merely decipher it by the hand gestures? Cyclonian wasn't exactly Cybertronian and couldn't be translated by the universal translator. Rumors said that Cyclones, in order to strengthen the bond among their own people, had made up their own secret language that only Cyclones could understand, and usually refused to speak in any other language, otherwise staying silent. Some bots believed the Cyclones had entirely _forgotten_ how to speak Cybertronian themselves, but could still understand the normal language spoken by other bots.

Before Starscream could think much about the Cyclone named Haze, the pink bot knelt down to be at optic-level with Starscream. Starscream stared defiantly into his eyes.

"Hey there," the bot said and smiled sweetly. "What's your name, little guy?"

Starscream frowned at the way this bot spoke to him. "Starscream," he hissed. "And I'm _bigger_ than you."

"Sure you are, but still small for a Flier, not like my friends Sharpshot and Turbine," the bot said and gestured the beast-bot and copter-bot. "My name is Coilspring, and your face has already met Shocker." Coilspring gestured the blue Grounder around the same build as himself. "And the big guys are Drivetrain and Roadwheel." He gestured the truck-bot and the tank-bot.

"That's nice," Starscream spat, not really interested in names anymore. "What do you want with me?"

Coilspring frowned a bit at Starscream's lack of interest, but soon his smile returned. "Well, we saw you walking around the city here yesterday, and we decided to follow you back to your hiding place."

Starscream's frown fell, instead shock was painted on his face. He had been noticed? He had been seen and he had not noticed the intruders themselves? He had been followed by enemies this whole time?

"But don't worry, we're not going to kill you," Coilspring added. "We would actually like to ask you to join us. We could use a bot like you."

Starscream's skeptical face returned and frowned his face. "Why so?" he simply asked.

"Well, you seem to have an awful lot of Energon for a lone bot," Coilspring replied and gestured the many Energon cubes stacked, though most of them were empty now, apparently having been consumed by the Marauders while he was asleep. "Not to mention a whole alloygator. Well, minus a few limbs, but still a good amount of mesh left. You must be a pretty good hunter to have downed an alloygator all by yourself, little Seeker."

"How do you know I'm a Seeker?"

"I don't know how many Starscreams there are on Cybertron, but the only one I know of is a Seeker. Are you not him?"

Starscream was silent for a moment before answering. "I am, but what does that have to do with the alloygator? And why are you eating it?"

The bots chuckled at his response, except for the Cyclone. "Same reason as you are eating it, I presume," Coilspring replied. "For the metal and Energon, of course!"

Starscream gazed surprised at the bots. "You... you know about consuming metal?"

"Uh, yeah?" Shocker said, the first bot other than Coilspring to speak. "We've been hunting mechanimals for several hundred years now. Don't everybot do that?"

"If the last bots I was with are anything to go for, no," Starscream replied. "Even I've only known about it for the last couple of weeks. How have you known for centuries?"

The bots looked at each other for a moment, just like Paralax' group used to.

"It's something we have to do to survive, you dumbaft," the copter-bot named Turbine said. "Not like you living in luxury in all your life."

"Though we haven't seen _these_ things before," the beast-bot named Sharpshot said and held up a golden apple. "They're pretty good too. Where'd you get 'em?"

Starscream opened his mouth to answer, but then immediately shut it. The movement was too slow to not be noticed, however. Coilspring smirked at the Seeker.

"That's right, where did you get all this Energon, not to mention the alloygator and these... things?" he asked with a sickingly sweet voice.

"Don't you hunt?" Starscream answered.

"We've only found a few dead alloygators in the desert, but yours seems to be fresh. Where did you find the Energon?"

"I thought you Marauders had Energon coming easily to you, what with your two Fliers and everything," Starscream replied.

The bots once again exchanged looks before turning their attention back to Starscream.

"Where did you get this information?" Coilspring asked curiously.

"From a bot named Paralax," Starscream replied. "He told me all about you Marauders."

"And where is this Paralax you speak of?"

"He's dead now," Starscream replied and smirked widely. "I killed him. I killed his entire group, all five of them. And I'll do the same to you, once I get out of this thing."

The bots looked around at each other again, before turning back and laughing loudly. Starscream's smirk disappeared and was replaced by a frown.

"I'm serious," Starscream snarled offended. "I'll kill every single one of you!"

"Sure, sure, that's what they all say," Coilspring replied, still giggling and wiping away some oil from his eyes. "You're really cute, you know that, Screamy?"

Starscream hissed at the insult. "Don't call me that!" he snarled.

"What, cute?"

"Screamy. Don't _ever_ call me that!"

The bots smiled as they shared another gaze with each other, mentally communicating with each other.

"Oh, you have a problem with that, Screamy?" Shocker asked in a similarly silky voice and giggled.

"Shut up," Starscream hissed at the blue bot.

"Aw, isn't he cute when he's angry?" the truck-bot called Drivetrain said and nudged Roadwheel the tank-bot in the side.

"Yeah, we should keep him as a pet instead," Roadwheel replied with a chuckle. "And put a little collar on him. Like a cybercat."

"Sssssshhhhut uuuuuup..." Starscream hissed even louder.

"Aw, he even hisses like one," Turbine remarked and giggled. "Can I pet him?"

"Don't touch me," Starscream snarled. "Don't you _dare_ touch me."

Coilspring smirked widely and leaned forward... and pat Starscream on the head like a cyberdog.

"Will you be a good pet and tell me where you got all this Energon from?" he asked sweetly while stroking the blue helm.

"Get your dirty hand off me," Starscream hissed and shook his head to remove the hand, but it simply moved down his jawline, making him stiffen.

"We can do this the easy way," Coilspring said quietly and stroke his fingers down Starscream's jawline to right under his chin. "Or we can do it the _un_ easy way. You will talk. Eventually. I just have to see what makes you tick."

As Coilspring's finger was at the tip of Starscream's chin, he replied by snapping out at the finger. Coilspring retreated his finger just in time to keep it. Everyone winced back, but instead of shock, grins presented themselves on their faces, except for the Cyclone, which seemed more nervous than entertained by the scene.

"Ooh, a fiesty one, you are," Coilspring chuckled as he looked at his unharmed finger. "That was a close one, huh. Struck a nerve, maybe? Or maybe there's another place that will make you talk?"

Coilspring's hand returned and began stroking Starscream down the neck and shoulder. Starscream was irked by the light touches and felt very uncomfortable being touched by another bot, especially while restrained and unable to stop them. Starscream had never felt comfortable being touched by anyone anywhere, not even by his colleagues or anyone he had been raised by or with. Only his one friend Jetfire had been trustworthy enough to touch him, as he knew Starscream and his idiosyncracies, including his issue with touch.

This bot was violating him. After stroking his arm, he went up Starscream's wing, making it twitch and slap out for the hand.

"Stop," Starscream hissed and tried to lean away, almost falling over. "Stop it."

"Will you tell me where you got the Energon?" Coilspring asked and grabbed his arm to prevent him from falling over.

"Never."

"Well then, I will just have to continue then, won't I?"

Starscream tried to move away from Coilspring, but this one held a firm grip on the other's arm while stroking along the wing which kept slapping against the hand and the wall behind it, trying to get away. Starscream desperately tried to kick the bot away, but Coilspring simply planted his knees on Starscream's thighs to prevent them from moving. Starscream wanted to swipe at the bot, but couldn't with his wrists bound.

Then, as he wrangled with his wrists, he suddenly felt the bond loosening a little. It wasn't much, but he could definitely feel it being weaker than before. Maybe even weak enough that he could break out of them by force. An idea popped into his mind as Coilspring's fingers reached the tip of his wing.

"Please, no more," Starscream whined quietly, faking a meltdown. "I'll tell you... just stop, please..."

Coilspring's face seemed to light up by Starscream's breakdown. "Go on," he said and removed his hand, though kept the other on the arm.

"Come closer... please," Starscream whispered. "I will only tell you... I don't trust the others..."

Coilspring naively leaned his head in closer, uncomfortably close to Starscream's own face. "Yes?"

Starscream's defeated expression turned into a smirk as with one swift movement, he seperated his wrists from each other, breaking the bond and causing Coilspring's hand to let go of his arm in surprise. In the next moment, Starscream wrapped his arms around Coilspring's neck.

"You're dead."

"Wait-"

In another swift movement, Starscream suppressed Coilspring's head until it popped off the neck and rolled down along the ground towards the others, leaving a blue trail of Energon in its path. Everybot stopped smiling and laughing, now all staring at the head and Starscream in disbelief.

"No... you monster!" Sharpshot exclaimed and pulled out a gun. "You'll pay for that!"

As Sharpshot shot, Starscream pulled Coilspring's dead body in front of himself, using the corpse as a shield as he got back onto his feet. He tossed the body in front of him and hit Sharpshot, causing the beast-bot to fall over. The other bots pulled their own guns and started shooting after Starscream.

Starscream did his best to avoid the shots while he reached behind his back to grab his swords... only to find that his back was empty, only his two pairs of wings being back there. Starscream cringed at the realization. They had taken his swords too! He could spot them with their yellow blades at the top of the pile of weapons. But they were behind the six still living bots, all shooting at him except for the Mini-Con, who instead was hiding behind some boxes, apparently unwilling to fight.

Not being able to dodge the shots forever, Starscream decided to instead deploy his null-ray cannons and started firing after the bots. They too tried their best to dodge, but Drivetrain failed to avoid one shot and fell down, stiff and stunned. But it wouldn't last for long.

 _I'll have better chances if I attack from the air,_ Starscream thought and leapt into the air, followed by his initiating jet mode.

As he ascended to the sky, the Marauders apparently had the same idea, for soon he found himself being shot upon by Turbine in helicopter mode and Sharpshot in beast mode, which appeared to be a large technohawk. While Sharpshot wasn't exactly firing lasers at Starscream, he did dart swiftly around the Seeker and tried to land a hit with his long, sharp talons. Luckily, Starscream was very good at dodging, even in jet mode. He wasn't the top Seeker for nothing, after all.

But he couldn't fly around forever, and he couldn't leave without his swords, as they were his best means of defense at close range. He really needed to improve his own claws. So he boosted up in speed and did half a loop while spinning, so he was facing the two other Fliers. Going head on against them whilst easily avoiding their lasers, Starscream aimed at Turbine's rotor blades and fired his blasters. The lasers hit, and the entire rotor was shot off the helicopter, causing Turbine to crash.

While Sharpshot got distracted by his comrade's fall, Starscream closed in on the beast-bot, reverted to bot mode and landed on top of him. Sharpshot sunk greatly in altitude by being boarded, but he tried desperately to stay in the air and struggled to shake the Seeker off at the same time. Starscream held on, however, and raised his right hand before punching a hole in the technohawk's back, grabbing hold of several wires and cables and pulling them out. Sparks flew and Energon sprayed from the action. Sharpshot fell silent and started to fall, at which Starscream activated his thrusters to stay in the air before reverting back to jet mode.

As Sharpshot fell dead to the ground, Turbine got back onto his feet, heavily injured but still alive. He turned around as Starscream descended and reverted back to bot mode, aiming for the copter-bot. Barely a second after transforming, Starscream raised his right leg and swept it downward, the large blue talons on his foot slashing across Turbine's chest, throat and abdominal plates. Energon leaked everywhere, Starscream likely having hit a major vein, and soon Turbine fell to the ground, leaking, groaning and seizing, dying a slow and painful death.

"Get him, Shocker!" Roadwheel exclaimed as he entered tank mode.

Starscream looked up from the mess of Turbine and Sharpshot, instead focusing on the blue Shocker who charged in with daggers forward, trying to stab Starscream. Starscream avoided the attacks, but struggled keeping up with Shocker's surprising speed. It had been this bot who had knocked Starscream unconscious back in his own camp, who had caught him off guard and got him captured. He and the other Marauders had underestimated Starscream, and now they were paying for their grave mistake. They had caught the wrong Seeker.

Instead of using his blunt claws unsuitable for battle or reaching for his swords, Starscream opted simply for launching his fists at Shocker. Shocker was also not bad at dodging, meaning neither combatant really hit the other. But at the same time, Shocker did not seem as though he was really taking the fight seriously. Something was off...

"Now!" Roadwheel shouted from a distance.

Shocker jumped out of the way while Starscream looked in direction of Roadwheel and cringed. The tank had his cannon aimed at the Seeker, and a light was charging up in there. The next second, the cannon fired its purple energy blast.

Starscream barely managed to jump out of the way to avoid being blasted to bits. That tank had a lot of firepower. But so did Starscream.

Starscream deployed his null-ray cannons again and aimed them at the tank. It seemed the tank had to recharge before it could launch another of those high-powered blasts. Starscream had to take him down before that.

"Oh no, you don't!"

Before Starscream could charge his own cannons, Shocker appeared from the left and stabbed Starscream in the left upper arm. Starscream shrieked in pain and launched a fist into Shocker's face. This, however, exposed his abdomen, which Shocker proceeded to stab into the right side of with his other dagger.

Starscream screamed in pain and grabbed hold of both arms, pulling them away from his new wounds. It was now a test of strength.

"Don't think I'm gonna let you stun Roadwheel, you dirty Seeker," Shocker snarled as he tried to move the daggers back toward Starscream.

Starscream huffed in pain and weariness. "Who said I was going to stun him?" he hissed. "My null-rays have two modes. Stun, and kill everything."

Shocker seemed a bit taken aback by the response. "Now you're just giving me more reason to keep you at bay."

While Starscream was leaking and trying to keep Shocker at bay, a charging sound reached his audio receptors, causing him to look to the right. Roadwheel was readying another blast!

 _Scrap,_ Starscream thought in panic. _I'm wounded, outnumbered and about to be hit with a blast that could easily blow me in half._

An idea suddenly popped into his adrenaline-induced mind, and he looked from the tank to Shocker. A very sinister idea, but there was no room for ethics here.

In a swift movement, Starscream bit onto the right dagger, pulled it out of Shocker's grasp, then the other dagger in the same way, and threw them both aside.

"What the..." Shocker said, looking surprised at the action, not having expected the Seeker to disarm him with his mouth.

Starscream then headbutted Shocker, dazing him for a moment so the Seeker could grab hold around the Grounder's arms and torso.

Slightly dizzy himself, Starscream ran towards Roadwheel as he was almost finished charging his cannon, with Shocker in his arms. By the time Shocker finally regained his senses, it was too late.

"Wait, sto-"

Starscream lifted Shocker above his head and shoved him into the large nozzle of Roadwheel's cannon, head first.

Starscream ran off with his hands covering the wounds on his arm and abdomen, before anyone could comprehend what had just happened.

Roadwheel tried to stop his cannon, but there was already too much energy built up in there, and as he reached cover, Starscream watched the cannon inflate and glow with heat and energy.

In the next moment, the cannon exploded, Shocker having been blown to bits, and Roadwheel reverted back to bot mode, though was already seriously injured from the point-blank explosion and could barely move. He just lay on the ground, leaking heavily.

Starscream got out of his cover and sighed of relief. The relief was soon to be over, however, as Drivetrain had finally gotten out of his paralysis and rose to his feet.

"You will not get away with this, you beast," Drivetrain growled, though he stumbled a bit, still feeling the effects of the stun.

Despite his injuries and exhaustion, Starscream pulled his arms away from his wounds, letting the Energon leak from them. He transformed his left arm into a null-ray and pointed the cannon at Drivetrain. He began charging up his cannon in its characteristic pink light, settting it to high power, with the intention of shooting off a blast that would destroy its target, rather than just stunning it.

But Drivetrain was clear enough in the head to know what Starscream was trying to do. Just as Starscream was about to fire the cannon, Drivetrain jumped out of the way. The pink laser was fired from the cannon, brighter than usual, and missed the truck-bot, instead continuing until it hit a tall ruin. The ruin was decimated in a bright, white light with a pinkish tint.

Drivetrain looked in direction of the laser and was probably relieved he got out of the way in time. At least, that's what he thought.

Barely a second after he dodged to his left, Starscream lifted his right arm and pointed it directly at him. Drivetrain cringed. Starscream had deployed his right null-ray without Drivetrain noticing, and charged up shortly after the left cannon. He had intentionally allowed the left laser to miss so he could get his right cannon to get a precise aim and a shot that couldn't miss.

Drivetrain was too taken aback by the second cannon that he failed to dodge the next shot.

The null-ray was fired with as much power, if not more, than the first one. The narrow laser blasted through the truck-bot's chest like it was nothing, and the contact caused Drivetrain's internal organs to blow up, causing an explosion from the inside. Drivetrain fell to the ground, his upper half and lower half blown apart, Energon pooling around him and the organs charred and in pieces. The light disappeared from his optics as his Spark exinguished.

As soon as the bot was dead, Starscream turned off his null-ray and reverted his cannons back into normal arms. He fell together a bit, letting out a sigh. The battle was over. He covered his left arm with his right hand, and the right side of his abdomen with his left hand. He needed medical supplies fast.

Starscream looked around at the bots on the ground. Sharpshot the technohawk was still in beast mode, with his insides torn out through his back. Shocker's body parts were all over the place, blown to bits by the explosion. Drivetrain was on the ground with his top half seperated from his lower half, a massive hole in the middle showing his organs, wires and cables hanging out with Energon in a large pool. Turbine lay on his back with three very deep claw marks from Starscream's talons, an even larger Energon pool underneath him as he had leaked out. Coilspring lay headless still over by the wall Starscream had woken up against. Roadwheel lay by the pile of blackish blue metal and Energon that used to be Shocker. The tank was still alive but couldn't move.

Starscream huffed as he limped over to the pile of weapons, past the dying Roadwheel. He found his two yellow swords and once again removed his hands from his wounds to pick them up. He wasn't done yet.

"D...don't..." Roadwheel groaned as Starscream approached him with the swords in hands. "P-please..."

Starscream didn't say anything. He just stared blankly at Roadwheel below him. Tired, indifferent. Starscream lifted his right sword into the air, and before Roadwheel could utter another word, the Seeker swung down hard, cutting the tank's head off, putting him out of his misery.

Starscream sighed as the deed was done. "Not this scrap again..." he huffed, remembering he had done the exact same thing not even a week ago.

A small sound reached his audio receptors, bringing him back to attention. He looked around the camp. Something was off.

 _Wait, wasn't there seven of them?_ he thought anxiously. _Wasn't there a Mini-Con with them? Where did he-_

A black and purple sphere dashed out from among some boxes in high speed. Starscream reacted quickly and dug his sword into the exact spot where the Cyclone was going. The sphere stopped just in time to not get sliced in half, and the Mini-Con immediately reverted back to bot mode. The Cyclone named Haze leapt away and shrieked.

"Where do you think you're going?" Starscream asked with a snarl, pulling his sword out of the ground and faced full front against the Mini-Con. "Are you going to run away from your comrades? Do you think I will let you?"

Haze held his arms anxiously in front of himself and looked around at his dead comrades. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but instead, he held forth his hands... and started signing with them.

Starscream paused at the action. "Cybertronian Sign Language?" he remarked. "You know that?"

Haze nodded vigorously. He kept signing. Starscream watched the signs, trying to remember everything he had learned about sign language.

_My name is Haze. I am a medic. I fixed you up. I can fix you up again, if you will let me._

Starscream looked down at himself. Aside from the new wounds on his left arm and right side of his abdomen, he now noticed that the wound on the left side of his abdomen, gained from Tinker the Scrapmetal, was gone, as were the other glaring wounds he had kept bandages on for several days now.

Starscream put his swords back on his back, but only so he could cover his new wounds with his hands again, to slow down the leaking.

"I'm not sure I believe you," Starscream said skeptically. "I have never heard of a Cyclone medic."

Haze continued signing. _I might be the first one. I am not like the others. I do not like fighting or hurting others or seeing others get hurt. We are not all like that. There are many like me who are trying hard to break the stereotype._

"Then why don't you just speak Cybertronian?" Starscream asked, both curiously and cautiously.

_It is not that easy. Speaking Cyclonian has been part of our culture for so long, it is almost impossible for me or anyone else to change. I have no problem with our language, it is merely how you other bots view us that bothers me. I want to be seen as competent, trustworthy, someone who matters._

Haze paused in his signing, apparently waiting for Starscream to say something. Starscream thought about the information given. He hummed and let out a sigh.

"Very well," Starscream said. "If you insist to change, I will let you fix me up."

Haze seemed to brighten by the acceptance. He gestured towards a box, and Starscream walked over to it, sitting down. Haze immediately went to the medical supplies and fetched a blowtorch and bandages. As he got back to Starscream, he gestured for Starscream to remove the hand from his abdomen so he could work. Starscream hesitated for a moment.

"If you try anything funny, I still have enough energy left to slice you in half or blow you to smithereens, you understand?" Starscream warned.

Haze nodded vigorously, understanding very well. Starscream sighed and removed his hand. Haze put the blowtorch against the wound and began working on the wound. Starscream cringed when the flame touched a sensitive spot, and Haze said a noise that was perhaps meant as an apology. He was more careful afterwards, and Starscream barely felt anything.

Starscream felt a bit weird, sitting there, on a box, being fixed up by a stranger whose comrades he had just murdered all of. Brutally, even. He hummed.

"Aren't you afraid of me?" Starscream asked, as Haze seemed to finish with closing the wound on his abdomen. "I just killed all your friends."

Haze paused before applying the bandage and signed. _They were not my friends. I joined them because I was alone and helpless, and they let me join them because I am a medic. But they were never nice to me. And yes, I was a bit scared of you, but only because I feared you would kill me in your craze._

Starscream chuckled. "I know you're signing, but you seem a lot smarter than most Cyclones."

_That is the stereotype I was talking about before. Because we speak Cyclonian instead of Cybertronian, everybot thinks we are stupid and primitive. That is not how most of us are. There are a few loose screws here and there, but they are in the minority. I am sure not all Seekers are as smart and powerful as you._

"Seekers are not a race," Starscream argued. "It's an occupation. A class. We are air warriors, similar to gladiators being pit fighters. You, on the other hand, are a race. You can't blame us for having prejudices against your race."

Haze frowned at the Seeker's words. _You know, that is really offensive. It is always wrong to have prejudices, whether it is against a species, a race, a class or a faction. You got offended when I spoke of Seekers, did you not? There is no difference, a stereotype is a stereotype, and anyone will be offended if you are being rude to the group they belong to._

Starscream's mouth contorted into a thin line, feeling a bit embarrassed about his phrasing. "I... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound offensive..."

 _I forgive you. Just try to think before you speak, okay?_ Haze then got started on wrapping a bandage around Starscream's abdomen, to keep the wound from getting infected. They were silent while he did that. Starscream thought about what Haze had just told him.

"I... have a hard time knowing when to be quiet," Starscream said as Haze was about finished with the bandage. "I sometimes end up saying things without thinking. And very often I end up offending someone without knowing it. Sometimes they tell me, and sometimes they don't. And then I will go, having offended someone and I don't feel bad about it. It's been like this my whole life. And bots keep asking me what's wrong with me. I don't think there's anything wrong with me. Is there?"

Haze took a moment to think before he signed again. _There are some bots that think differently than others. They are often considered weird and strange and not worth the same as normal bots. But I do not agree with that. I have a friend who is just like you, never knows when to shut up, rash, restless, rude, never thinks before he says or does something. He does not have a lot of friends._

Starscream sighed. "I've never really had any friends in my life either," he admitted, without knowing why. "Only Jetfire. But now I left him, and the others. And now I'm all alone. Like you."

Starscream felt a hand on his leg and looked back at Haze as he continued signing.

_But I also know of other bots like you and my friend, who have all turned out with great lives, jobs and high positions. I mean, you used to be a leader, right? If bots knew what you are going through, what you have been going through your whole life, they might respect you more. And bots that think the same way you do might get inspired by your success to aim for success themselves._

"I'm not sure what other bots you're talking about," Starscream replied. "I have never seen a psychiatrist before. I don't know what I am or what I am supposed to be classified as. And I don't care. I have never needed to find out. I have never had a problem with myself. Only other bots have a problem with me. But that's their loss, not mine. Jetfire accepted me for who I am, and I don't need anyone else. I _didn't_ need anyone else..."

Starscream fell silent. Haze decided not to respond right away. Instead, he gestured for Starscream to remove his other hand from the wound on his arm so he could work the blowtorch on it. They were silent for several minutes, the only sound coming from the faint roar of the blowtorch, melting the metal around the wound and slowly closing it.

When Haze finished blowtorching and started wrapping a bandage around the arm, Starscream looked back down at the dark Mini-Con.

"You know, you're not such a bad bot, Haze," Starscream said, letting just a faint smile on his face.

Haze looked back up at the Seeker and smiled back with his sharp Cyclone teeth, but didn't sign right away, first finishing the bandage. As it was all wrapped up and tied together, he took a step back and observed his work, then turned back to Starscream and began signing again.

_You do not seem to be so bad yourself either, Starscream. Even though you... just killed the bots I was living with._

"You captured me, raided my camp and brought me here against my will. Where are we, anyway?"

_We are still in the same city we found you in, if that is what you are wondering about._

"We are?" Starscream replied surprised.

 _Yes, you were only out for about six hours. It is dawn now,_ see?

Starscream looked up. The sky was starting to get brighter. The sun was about to rise.

"You're right," he replied. He looked back down at the Mini-Con. There was a moment of silence between them. Haze broke it... sort of. Signing was silent, after all.

 _Can I... come with you?_ Haze smiled nervously.

Starscream felt a rush in his tanks at the question. Memories of Paralax, Tinker and the others rushed through his mind, followed by their betrayal and immediate demise. He shook his head and sighed.

"I'm sorry," he replied. "I don't think that's a good idea."

Haze's smile faded from his face. _Why not? Is it-_

"I have... trust issues," Starscream interrupted the signing. "I was just recently betrayed by my so-called 'friends'. I'm not... I'm not ready yet to be with other bots. I'm sorry."

Haze seemed disappointed in the answer, but then forced a smile on his face. _I understand. It was nice talking to you, at least. But are you really going to be okay alone out here? You had so many wounds before I fixed you up._

"I will be fine, Haze," Starscream assured. "You go and find a new group to be with. Or, if you are not against the factions, try convince either of them to take you in. I have heard the Decepticons are not very judgmental... though the Autobots might be less violent. I'm not sure, I've never been either myself. Actually, you are probably better off on your own, or with a neutral group."

Haze gazed uncertain between Starscream and the ruins.

"You will be okay, Haze," Starscream assured. "Just tell whoever you find that you are medic, and they will take you in. Medics are scarce these days, and very much needed. Just tell them before they kill you."

Haze nodded understandingly. _That is what I have been doing this whole time._

Starscream stepped back. "Well, it was nice knowing you. Now take off before I change my mind about you."

Haze looked a bit confused at Starscream. Considering the conversation they just had, he couldn't really take Starscream's 'threat' seriously, but he knew he had to go. Haze nodded slowly and reverted to sphere mode. The black and purple sphere quickly darted out from the camp, into the ruins and disappeared into the dawning morning.

Starscream sighed and looked around the camp, at all the stuff the Marauders had stolen, from him and other bots. He had a lot of cleaning up to do.

* * *

Starscream took his time searching around the camp for everything the Marauders had owned, whether stolen or not. They were all dead now, so they didn't need it anymore, which technically made everything here his. And they had quite a lot of stuff; weapons, explosives, datapads, Energon, edible metal, armor plating, medical supplies, canned oil and even a rotary buffer. Starscream looked down at himself. While most of his wounds were healed, his armor was beginning to get a bit dull and full of dents. Perhaps some oil and buffing would be good for his plating.

However, at the moment, he had nowhere to put all these new things of his. His own camp had been discovered, which meant it could be discovered again, and this scenario could take place again. This camp was also too exposed for him to settle into. He needed to find a new place to stay, which didn't fall well with him. So he took his time to organize everything in the camp, then decide which of these things were most important.

Starscream decided to put the medical supplies in his cockpit first, along with a single Energon cube. The datapads were not important for his survival, and he already had weapons of his own - although he had almost lost his swords and didn't have anything to compensate for it. The talons on his feet barely made for a good replacement, and the claws on his hands were too blunt to be used as weapons.

"There's no excuse to delay it any longer," Starscream said to himself as he packed his cockpit. "I need to sharpen my claws and let them grow longer. Maybe more metal consumption will do the trick."

The oil and buffer were mere luxuries, also not vital, but definitely something he wanted very much. The Cybertronian body did work more smoothly if lubricated well with oil, and he had heard that shiny, smooth armor made for quicker movement and faster travelling than dull, dented armor. He wasn't sure if it was true, as he had applied it to himself most of his life. Perhaps now that he had been living without it for some time, he would be able to notice a difference. If he managed to get the polishing gear with him, that was.

As for the alloygator remains, the metalo-fruits and meshetables, he could always get that another time, from the plants and wildlife. But Energon was an absolute necessity for survival, and medical supplies were obviously utmost important to make sure his wounds healed and he didn't get any infections.

As Starscream stuffed his cockpit with the most vital items, he reverted to jet mode and scouted the city ruins from the sky. He wanted to make sure that it was indeed the same city his own camp was located in, and that Haze hadn't been lying to him. He needed to know where he was, so he could figure out where to go from there.

Eventually he recognized the small ruin that used to shelter him. He descended, landed, returned to bot mode, and took a look around. The camp itself was surprisingly intact despite the ambush and raid, though a few boxes had been knocked over, as well as a single broken datapad lying on the ground in front of the shelter. Starscream knelt down and picked it up to inspect it. It wouldn't turn on, so he didn't know which one it was.

He rose up and looked around again. Then something caught his attention within the shelter itself. One of the boxes stacked inside had been knocked slightly to the side, and now Starscream could see something was under it. Something out of place.

Starscream went over to the heavy boxes and shoved them aside, until the entire floor inside was visible. In the middle of the floor was a large dark square, which seemed to be some kind of hatch with some engravings on it.

"There's a basement here?" Starscream remarked at the hatch. "What could be down there?"

He knelt down to investigate it further, and blew away dust that had settled onto the main part of the hatch that hadn't been covered by boxes. Now the engravings became more clear, and the metal became darker. Starscream knocked on the hatch with loud, deep clangs. It seemed to be durabyllium, the hardest metal alloy to exist. Already there Starscream felt suspicious.

"A basement hatch made of durabyllium? Must be something important down there. But how to open it...?"

As he inspected the hatch further, he saw a small circular hollow with an hourglass marking inside. That must be the key to open the hatch, he assumed. But where could the key be? Somewhere in the area, perhaps?

Starscream mentally imprinted the image of the marking in his processor before getting up and searching the camp for something with the same marking. He searched the area within a ten mechanometer radius of the small shelter for an hour or two before he found something. But it wasn't a key.

It was a ring. A small, dark ring with a round, flat socket. As he looked closer, the socket had an hourglass marking similar to the one on the hatch. Starscream hummed and returned to the shelter, knelt down and looked between the ring and the keyhole. Indeed, the markings were identical, even the size of the circles.

"A bit unconventional key, but alright," Starscream commented and turned the ring so it was mirroring the keyhole. Only, he found it didn't really fit.

Starscream hummed and pulled the ring away from the hole, examining them further. They had the same size in the circles, the hourglass markings were the same size and shape, completely identical. What could be wrong?

He looked closer at the ring, first from the front, then from the side. He noticed something strange and zoomed in on the hourglass marking, just barely visible from behind the circular wall. One end of the hourglass seemed to be just about a millimeter shorter and askew to the other end. Starscream hummed yet again and looked closer at the keyhole on the hatch. He laid his head on the side for a better look. While difficult to see, he could just barely make out with his zoomed-in vision that the top half of the hourglass was just a millimeter shorter than the bottom half. It was just different enough that putting the ring in on the wrong end wouldn't fit.

Starscream sighed and rose back up, looked closely at the ring and turned it so the taller half of the hourglass was facing up, then inserted the ring once again into the keyhole. This time the ring fit right in, making a small click sound.

"Why does it have to be so precise?" Starscream muttered in wonder.

Despite the click, nothing else happened, so Starscream tried to turn the ring in place. But it wouldn't budge even a nanometer. Starscream scratched his head in confusion. The key fit, but it still wouldn't unlock the hatch? What else could be wrong?

Taking another look at the hatch, particularly at the keyhole, he noticed it wasn't just a circular hollow; now that the ring was in, he noticed there were other, larger hollows surrounding the circle, four rectangles on the vertical side, the second left containing the ring. These hollows were slightly shallower than the ring hollow, and the right-most rectangle seemed to be slightly shorter than the others.

"This almost looks like... a fist," Starscream remarked after looking at it for a while. "A ring on a fist. I suppose that makes sense. So I'm supposed to insert the ring _while_ it's on my fist? And apparently it has to be the _right_ fist, if the small finger is anything to judge by. Well, okay then..."

Starscream removed the ring from the hollow, making sure not to accidentally turn it the wrong way, and then put it on his middle digit, so it would face the right way when he put his clenched fist down on the hatch.

Starscream's fist only just fit the hollow. Not perfectly, as the rectangles were sharp and his digits were a bit rounded, but apparently the exact shape of the fist wasn't too important, for as he pushed against the hole, another click sounded. Even then, nothing new happened. Starscream waited a whole minute, but nothing happened.

"Okay, obviously it wants me to turn the key," Starscream deduced. "It might be a bit difficult with my fist in, but I will give it a try."

He tried turning it right, but as soon as he made a quarter of a circle, the ring suddenly returned to its default position, followed by a low buzz and a mild electric shock going from the ring through Starscream's arm. He let out a yelp and pulled his hand away.

"What the frag," he exclaimed as he sat a mechanometer away from the strange hatch. "The lock is _electrified_?! Who designed this thing? What could be so important down there that the lock is this complex?"

Starscream shook his head to clear his thoughts and returned to the hatch. It had been a mild shock, not enough to damage him, but it was unpleasant enough to deter any sane, normal bots from trying again. But Starscream was not a normal bot. He was only even more curious to know what was hidden behind the hatch.

"So if I make a mistake in the unlocking mechanism, the door will shock me. Fine, give me your best shock."

Determined to find out what the hatch was hiding, Starscream reinserted his fist with the ring into the keyhole. The click sounded, and he thought. Since turning right was wrong, he had to go left, obviously. He turned his fist the left way and held his breath in suspense. As he reached the quarter circle, a click sounded, and no electric shock hit him. Starscream exhaled in relief and smiled. He was doing it right. But it didn't seem to be unlocked yet, so he had to continue.

He continued downward in the left direction, but as he reached the half circle, a deep buzz sounded and the ring reset swiftly and suddenly. Another electric shock hit Starscream as a punishment for error, but this one was notably harder than the first one. The first one had been a warning, just a little more unpleasant than a static electric shock. This one actually hurt, and Starscream let out a yelp in pain. It didn't last for more than a second, however, and he didn't feel as if anything was damaged.

"Well, this is interesting," he hissed lowly. "So every time I make a mistake, the voltage gets higher? What kind of bot would be so crazy to make this kind of system?"

Without removing his fist this time, Starscream remained in his knee-sitting position and thought a bit harder before trying again. If the voltage got higher for every mistake he made, this could get pretty dangerous. He had to be very precise in solving this strange and a bit bizarre puzzle.

"You will not keep me out, whoever you are," Starscream said to the hatch. "I will get you open and see what you're hiding from me. Let's see, a quarter to the left seemed to be correct, but continuing left was wrong. Which must mean I have to go right then. Very well, I shall try it out."

He took a deep breath and restarted the unlocking mechanism. First he turned his fist 90 degrees to the left. As soon as the click sounded, he turned his fist back in the right direction. As it hit the top part of the circle, another click sounded, as expected. But now he was uncertain how to continue. Should he continue toward the right, or should he go back to the left?

Before continuing, Starscream looked around the hatch again, to see if there was any clue he might have missed. At the top middle of the hatch he noticed three circles, a big one in the middle with two smaller circles to the right and left. There was nothing else to see on the hatch, and the circles didn't provide much information.

"Screw it, I'll figure this out by myself," Starscream said and decided to turn his fist back in the left direction.

As soon as it hit the quarter left circle, the ring reset back to its original position with a low buzz and a shock to Starscream's frame. This time it lasted for two seconds and was even stronger than the previous shock. Starscream shrieked in pain and rattled as the shock disappeared. He felt sore in his arm and blinked several times, his optics almost malfunctioning. He had not expected the power of the voltage to be raised to such high levels so quickly, as it was only the third shock.

"I will kill whoever came up with this..." he hissed as he got his senses back together. "This... death thing." He snarled and shook his head to clear his thoughts and focus on the task at hand. This was starting to get dangerous real fast. Who knew how strong the next shock would be? Who knew if he could actually _survive_ the next one?

"Why am I doing this," he said to himself, more as a complain than as a question. "This is a really bad idea. But... I must see what's down there!"

Steadfast and determined, Starscream made another attempt to unlock the hatch. Whatever was in the basement must have been very important for the owner to have constructed such a complex and dangerous unlocking mechanism. They were trying to hide something, something very important.

Starscream did as he had done before, first ninety degrees to the left, then 90 degrees to the right, hearing both clicks. Since going to the left was wrong, he decided to go another 90 degrees to the right, going an entire 180 degrees right, half a circle, and heard a click.

"Ninety degrees to the left, one hundred and eighty degrees to the right," he noted. "Is there a pattern? Or should I keep going?"

Letting out a nervous huff and holding his breath, Starscream decided to continue with another 90 degrees to the right.

The ring reset. A low buzz sounded. And an immense shock ran through Starscream's body.

One moment he felt a massive shock of pain for five whole seconds, the next moment he found himself lying on the ground, the sky having turned from light to dark. He had passed out. The shock had been so great that he had been unconscious for hours. He still felt numb several places and couldn't move right away. He couldn't even open his mouth. He felt a burning sensation from within, and he could smell a scent of smoke.

 _Four shocks in and I was knocked unconscious,_ Starscream thought, about the only thing his tired self could still do at the moment. _If I make another mistake, I might die. Maybe I should just give up and find another place to live in..._

After about ten wake minutes of lying immobile on the ground, Starscream finally felt himself able to move his fingers and face again. After a few more minutes, he could move his arms, his right arm having pulled itself loose from the keyhole in reaction of the shock. He tried lifting himself up, but his right arm had been more weakened than his left, and he slipped back onto the ground. After a few more minutes he tried again, this time managing to lift his upper body from the ground, though still sitting wobbly and dizzy up, barely able to keep his eyes open.

Starscream shook his head to clear his thoughts. As dangerous as this was getting, he still wanted to find out what was under the basement. But he had already made four mistakes. A fifth one could kill him. It seemed a bot only had five attempts to get the door unlocked. A very morbid punishment for intrusion.

"Not like I have anything to lose anyway," Starscream sighed. "Vos is gone, I'm no Winglord anymore, I left my Seekers and abandoned my post as Sky Commander, I have no allies and live out here all alone. If I die... no one will miss me... No one will remember me..."

Well, perhaps except for Haze. If he survived, that was. Despite being a medic, the Mini-Con probably didn't have greater chances of survival than Starscream himself.

Starscream looked back at the keyhole and tried to remember what he had done before.

"Ninety degrees left... one hundred and eighty degrees to the right," he listed. "Going further right triggered a shock. Which means I have to go back left. But with how much? I can't afford to make another mistake or I might die."

Starscream thought about the numbers he had so far. 90 and 180. A circle. There must be a pattern somewhere.

Starscream's gaze went to the sky, which had turned black and was full of stars. He could just barely see the two moons shining their light down on him.

Starscream stiffened. A thought suddenly popped into his mind. He looked down at the hatch, specifically at the three circles engraved in the top middle. He looked back at the twin moons, then back at the circles.

"A large circle and two smaller ones," he muttered in thought. "They almost look like... a planet and two moons."

He looked back down at the circular keyhole and thought about the numbers used in the unlocking mechanism.

"A planet and two moons... a circular keyhole... ninety degrees left and one hundred degrees right..." After a moment, an idea popped into his mind. "Ninety and one hundred and eighty... they're the quarter and the half of a circle. First a quarter circle, then a half circle... does this mean I have to make a full circle?"

He looked back at the moons. "A quarter circle and half a circle are like smaller circles... like those on the drawing, and like the moons. If the small circles represent the moons, does that mean the big circle represents... the planet itself?"

It was still uncertain whether a full circle was what was needed though, and he couldn't afford to make another mistake. It was all or nothing now.

Taking a deep breath, Starscream went back in kneeling position and inserted his right fist with the ring into the keyhole, hearing the first click. Rather than being nervous, he felt calm now. He knew what to do now. He was certain his thought process was the correct one.

Starscream began the unlocking mechanism. He turned the ring 90 degrees to the left. "Hecate..." he whispered.

As he heard the click, he turned his fist back 180 degrees to the right and heard the two next clicks. "Artemis..." he whispered again.

Now was the moment of truth. The point of no return. If his theory was incorrect, this next action would be the death of him for sure. He would not be able to take another of those high voltage shocks, let alone an even stronger one. This next shock would be fatal. It was all or nothing.

Taking a deep breath and then holding it, Starscream made his decision and began turning his fist to the left. First 90 degrees... a click. Then another 90 degrees... another click.

Starscream felt a droplet of lubricate graze down the side of his face as he strained his fist to go another 90 degrees to the left, a whole 270 degrees in the left direction. Having flexible and somewhat magnetic joints was one of the good things about being a Cybertronian, but even that had limitations.

Another click sounded at the 270 degree mark, and Starscream let out a sigh of relief. Just one more quarter to go. And then he would either have unlocked the hatch... or die trying.

Starscream took another deep breath. "C-Cybertron..." he whispered and turned his fist another 90 degrees to the left, going 360 degrees left and straining his arm more than was considered normal.

He hit the 360 degree mark...

...and heard a click.

The ring turned back to its default position in the right direction.

Starscream cringed at the result and felt a rush in his tanks. Had he made a mistake? Would he get shock-

As soon as the ring returned to the top, another click sounded.

The keyhole ejected the ring and Starscream's fist.

A rumble sounded, and Starscream watched as the hatch began sliding into the floor away from him, presenting a flight of stairs leading into a dark basement.

Starscream felt his Spark racing fast, still getting over the shock... multiple shocks, as well as the surprise that he survived his final attempt to open the basement.

"I did it," he whispered and let out a laughter. "I did it! I survived! I unlocked the thing! Now to find out what's down there!"

His energy renewed by his success, Starscream got back on his feet and began descending into the dark basement. As he reached a certain point below the floor, the hatch suddenly began sliding back into place, covering the entire room in darkness. Starscream looked back in the direction the door was, until it closed and enveloped him in blackness. No turning back now, apparently.

Starscream moved on down the stairs, until he hit the floor. As he took a few steps forward, lights suddenly turned on by themselves on the ceiling, only slightly lighting his path through a long hallway. He walked on until he found a door on the left wall, and stopped in front of it. It had a sign above it. Most of it was faded, but he could somewhat make out the word 'Helix'.

"Helix, as in the city or a name?" Starscream wondered. "Must be a name. Otherwise this is spelled wrong. But if not, then these ruins must be the former Helex. Perhaps I will find out if I enter."

There was no handle or other normal way to get in through the door. It did not take long for Starscream to notice a panel to the left of the door, however. It had the same hourglass pattern inside a circle as on the ring, though this time without the additional fist hole. Starscream decided to keep the ring on though, as he put it against the panel. This time, a red light appeared and seemed to run up and down the ring before turning green and emitted a light beep. The door opened up.

Starscream stepped inside the dark room. As soon as he did, automatic lights turned on, enveloping the entire room in bright light, unlike the dim ones in the hallway.

It was a lab. And it was a _huge_ lab. But at first it didn't look like a lab, as Starscream noticed dozens, scores of potted metalo-trees lining up the walls and most of the floor, as well as several of the lab tables being covered by small pots containing metalo-plants in them. All the plants seemed to be dull, leafless and dead.

"This lab must have been abandoned for quite some time," Starscream remarked as he wandered the lab. On the first table he approached, just by the door, he found a datapad and turned it on. It only had one page, with three rotated arrows going left, right and left. Within the arrows was the text '90°', '180°' and '360°' respectively, and under the three numbers were the names Hecate, Artemis and Cybertron.

"This must be the code for the door topside," Starscream deduced, having just learned that. "Would have been nice to have this when I actually _needed_ it, so I didn't have to risk my life for this. What else is down here?"

Starscream put down the datapad and took a look around the lab. Other than the many, many metalo-plants, there were also some empty tables in the middle and by the walls, several cabinets filled with all sorts of chemicals, glass tools and containers, datapads in many rows and piles, devices placed here and there, most of them with a datapad lying right next to them.

Other than this one lab, Starscream could also see two doors in the right end of the lab, and another two doors in the left end of the lab. He decided to check out the doors to the right first.

Starscream opened the door on the right first. Inside was a small room with several cages, as well as two datapads on a table. He turned one of them on to check its contents. It was a list of subjects with numbers and letters, and a status to the right saying 'deceased' all the way down.

He turned the datapad off and turned on the other one. This one seemed to be more of a journal, describing the various 'subjects' and their statuses throughout specific periods of time, what they had been fed on and what had been done to them. It was too long for Starscream to get focused on, however, so he quickly turned it off again and put it down to check out the rest of the lab.

He left the small room and entered the one next to it. This room was larger and had a large pile of empty Energon cubes.

"Looks like whoever lived down here had plenty of Energon to go on," he deduced. "I wonder if they decided to hunker down here or if they went out for more..."

Not finding any datapads in this room, Starscream decided to leave it, close the door and walk down through the long, huge lab to the other end of the room. He noticed on one of the lab tables a visor and mouth mask, as well as a datapad next to it. The visor was red and the mask a regular gray color. Looking at another table, he saw a device he had no idea what was, which also had a datapad lying next to it. Perhaps the datapads lying around were instruction manuals or something.

As he reached the other end of the room, he started by opening the door to the right like in the other end. Another big room, though this time it wasn't a storage room, instead having rows of monitors and computers, as well as a big screen in the center serving as the main monitor, probably. There was a datapad lying on a table next to the door, and Starscream opened it. It was an instruction manual on how to operate the computers and how to access the Grid.

"Like I don't know how to go on the Grid," Starscream muttered insulted and turned off the datapad. He would look at it later. Maybe.

Starscream left the room and closed the door before moving to the last door. He opened it and stepped inside what appeared to be a closet for equipment. He stopped and cringed at the sight that met him.

On the floor, leaned up against the back wall, sat a bot. A dead bot. He was small, sleek, a Grounder for certain, having no apparent wings or rotors anywhere. Starscream could barely spot any hidden wheels on him. He was grayed out, suggesting he had been dead for quite some time, though he didn't have any rust on him, suggesting otherwise. What he did have, however, were large patches of black several places on his frame, which seemed as if it used to be blue and orange, but it was hard to determine with the grayness. His optics, though blackened, seemed to have used to be purple or pink. The optics were large and round like goggles, and the head was shaped into a sort of crown with two small spikes at the front and an additional spike to each side of the head. His body-type was pretty generic for a light Grounder, without many defining features.

On the floor next to the Grounder lay a strange device that looked like a vacuum of some sort. This one also had a datapad lying next to it. Starscream knelt down and picked up the datapad, turning it on. It was indeed an instruction manual, for what was indeed a vacuum device. It mentioned something with impurity and air.

"Who are you?" Starscream said quietly to the dead bot as he turned off the datapad and put it back on the floor. "What happened to you?"

Starscream rose up again, not wanting to touch the bot in case whatever had killed him was contagious, since there were no visible wounds on him. He looked around the small closet and found a small table with, not a datapad, but instead an audio log on it. He turned it on and examined it.

"'Professor Helix' log'," Starscream read aloud. "Sixty-five entries. Wow. So your name is Professor Helix, I suppose?" He looked between the dead bot and the audio log. "Perhaps this will tell me what happened here."

Starscream set the audio log to play entry number one. A scratchy but still clear voice sounded from the log.

" _Entry number one. Solar cycle 1, orbital cycle 1, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 1. My name is Professor Helix of Vos University. Today, disaster has hit Vos._ "

Starscream felt a rush in his tanks and stiffened. "Vos?" he repeated, but silenced as Helix continued.

" _I was conducting an experiment in my personal lab in the basement when a great explosion happened above ground. The tremor made me fall over and hit my head against one of the counters, knocking me unconscious. After an uncertain amount of time, I finally awoke, and everything was quiet. I left the basement and found my entire house gone - along with the rest of Vos City. I could see only smoldering ruins, raging flames and single bots darting through the sky, screaming while desperately trying to get away from the fire._ "

Starscream stared at the dead bot. "This is Vos? I've... been in Vos this whole time...?"

As Helix continued on the log, Starscream returned his attention to the machine.

" _I immediately returned to my lab and firmly shut the door. I did not wish for any of my specimens to get damaged. For it is extremely important research I am running here. I am trying to find a way to save the metalo-plants of our world. For they are in deep decline, and it only gets worse as the years pass._ "

Starscream perked at the mention of metalo-plants, now looking out into the lab at the many rows of trees and smaller plants. At least that explained why there were so many of them in the lab.

" _The war has been going on for millions of years now, and there's no indication that it's going to stop anytime soon. It seems Vos has been hit by the war as well. After returning to my lab, I tried to access the Grid to find out why Vos was bombed. It would appear a mysterious missile hit the city shortly after Tarn was bombed. There are rumors going on that Winglord Starscream and Lord Shockwave of Tarn have something to do with this._ "

Starscream perked at the mention of his name and Shockwave's name. Memories of the long discussions with Shockwave ran through his mind, and memories of the Seekers bombing specific areas of Tarn also presented itself in his mind. Followed by the destruction of Vos, which he had not seen personally himself, but which he had seen the aftermath of, shortly before leaving for Trypticon Station with the rest of the Seekers.

" _I personally do not care who's responsible for this city's destruction. In fact, I am only glad it happened._ "

Starscream frowned at Helix' dead body at the notion. How dare he think the destruction of Vos was a good thing! He soon continued:

" _Hopefully the destruction of Vos will reduce the amount of waste found in the surrounding Energon deposits. I am only glad that my lab is reinforced with durabyllium. Had it not been, I would have been a goner. Though my situation is not looking so good either. For while I am Vosian, I am but a simple Grounder, and thus Energon gathering will be a hard, may I even say an impossible task._ "

Starscream's anger subsided as Helix continued talking. He couldn't imagine how hard his current lifestyle might have been if he had been forged a Grounder instead of a Flier. The mention of waste in Energon also caught his attention.

" _The good news is, I still have plenty of Energon here in my lab, normally used for experiments. But now, it seems I must conserve my Energon for the time being, until I can figure something out. It is recommended to consume one whole standard Energon cube once per week, but I know Cybertronians can go longer without. Months, even years. Though this requires stasis lock, and I have no time to go into stasis. I must continue my research, for the future of all of Cybertron. For now, I will wait with my next refuelling until next month. Until then, I shall work._ "

The entry ended there. Starscream hummed at the information gained.

"So I'm in Vos City," he concluded. "All this time, I've been in Vos without knowing. How could I not have recognized my own city? Is it really so destroyed that even I, its former Winglord, could not recognize it anymore? And this bot, Helix, he was the only one who stayed behind? How long did he live? Maybe I will know if I play the next entry..."

Starscream set the log to play entry number two and listened. This entry was recorded a month after the first one.

" _Entry number two. Solar cycle 31, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 1. Today I refuelled for the first time in a month._ "

Starscream hummed at the information. "That must have been hard," he commented.

" _It was very_ _hard,_ " Helix' voice sounded on the log, almost as if replying to Starscream's comment, taking the Seeker slightly by surprise, " _but I managed to resist the temptation for thirty solar cycles. I do not think I could have handled going another month without Energon. It seems appropriate then that I refuel once a month. That should leave me functional for another five years. Not a lot of time, given my research. But my life is hardly more important than the future of Cybertron. If I am to only live for another five years, then I shall work to the best of my abilities, and nothing shall distract me or deter me._ "

Starscream scoffed and crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. "You could just go to the osmium forest and get more Energon," he commented. "Well, if you knew about it, I guess. You probably didn't."

" _In the course of the first month since Vos' destruction, it seems the Seekers have left Cybertron and been posted on an orbital space station known as Trypticon. I do not know what kind of place Trypticon Station is, but I have heard rumors over the Grid that a substance known as "Dark Energon" is produced there. Again, I do not know what this Dark Energon is, but it does not sound good._ "

"You have no idea," Starscream commented. Helix continued:

" _Regardless of what Trypticon or Dark Energon are, or what Starscream has decided to do now that his dear city is gone, I will not get involved in any business going on outside. I only left my lab once this month, about a week ago, just to see what the situation is out there. It would seem the entire city has become void of life now. Not even a single mechanimal pet or Flier in the sky did I see._ "

Starscream hummed again. "So you were the only one to stay behind and survive," he commented. "Well, for a while, anyway."

" _I collected as many samples of dead Vosians, domesticated mechanimals and metalo-plants as I could find. Things aren't looking good, from what I found in their CNA. The pollution from the Energon deposits surrounding the cities are having an effect on the residents of the cities. Even if they do not consume it, the particles in the air from evaporated Energon contain these toxins, and the Cybertronians are inhaling them in their ventilation systems without knowing it._ "

Starscream perked to attention at that and cringed. "Toxins? In the air? What-" He silenced as Helix continued speaking.

" _The effect does not take place right away, as the dosages of these toxins in the gas are small, but over time, the bots will be weakened and need more Energon to survive, as the toxins drain them of energy, little by little. And refining the polluted Energon of the cities doesn't make things better. The Energon itself may be safe to consume, but the toxic waste product from the refining process... it is destructive, to say the least. Even more so than when it was connected to the Energon itself. I fear the power of the toxic waste may soon be discovered, and in the hands of madmechs like Megatron, it would become a nightmarish bio-weapon._ "

Starscream felt himself shudder a bit by the information. One of the things he had heard of the Decepticons doing was using something called 'Tox-En', a weapon created from the waste product of refining crude Energon. The Toxic Energon was no news to him, and he knew of the devastating effects crude Energon had on bots before it was refined. Bots could die within minutes of contact, sometimes even seconds, and Toxic Energon was all concentrated poison, one hundred percent lethal upon contact.

But the toxins being in the air was new to Starscream. He did not know about that, as Helix said in his log. Helix continued:

" _This contamination in the Energon isn't just within the residents of the cities. It is within all of us, including me. Only time may tell when the toxicity will take me down as well. I must conduct further research to find out if anything can be done about the toxicity in a specimen already poisoned. It will be most important for everyone's future, both Cybertronians and Cybertron itself._ "

The entry ended there. Starscream was left with a feeling of foreboding.

"Pollution is not just in the Energon," he repeated. "It's in the air and even in ourselves. Even in me?"

Starscream looked at the entire log again. There were sixty-five entries. He did not have enough time to go through all of them right away. He could listen to them all later, but for now he just wanted to know what happened to Professor Helix. As such, he tapped forward until he was on the last entry, five years and two months after the second entry.

" _Entry number... sixty-five... Solar cycle... 1893... orbital cycle... 4... lunar cycle... 4... stellar cycle... 6..._ "

Starscream cocked a brow. Helix sounded very weak. Every word was slow and strained, as if he was just about out of energy, which he likely was, considering it was his last entry.

" _I... cannot... do this... anymore... My strength... is slipping... My consciousness... is fading... I have made... much progress... over the last five years... but it is... not enough... I still haven't... collected the specimens... needed..._ "

"Specimens?" Starscream commented. Helix continued, still strained.

" _I need... someone to... take over for me... Whoever is out there... listening... please... help me. I don't have long... so I will make this quick. I have locked... the door. The key... is outside somewhere... waiting for someone... to find it._ "

Starscream pouted at the dead bot. "So you're the one who made this death trap, huh?" He silenced as Helix continued.

" _The lab is made... of durabyllium. Nothing... will penetrate it. Only... the key will open... the lab. The lab... is sterile. This room... is safe to stay in. You must continue my... research... in my stead. You must... help save Cybertron... in the long run._ "

Starscream's pout disappeared. "Wait... what?"

" _Find and collect as many... specimens of... metalo-plants and... mechanimals as you can... Keep the CNA samples... safe. The small cubes will do. As will... the larger ones._ "

Starscream let his arms fall to his sides and stepped off the wall. "No, wait, I can't... I'm not a scientist, I don't..."

" _If you are a scientist... please, do what you can... to continue my research... If you are not a scientist... learn. There are datapads in the shelves... which will teach you what you need... to know..._ "

Starscream looked uncertain between Helix and the log. "I'm not... the right one for this... There has to be someone else... Someone good..."

" _I do not care... if you are a good bot, or bad... just please... have some consideration for our planet... Use my log for your own research... if you skipped ahead to the last entry... I bet you did... after all, sixty-five entries is a lot... heheh..._ "

Starscream fell silent. It was as if Helix knew what he was going to say, even with more than a thousand years between them. Now the Seeker just listened to the rest of the dying bot's log.

" _Remember me or forget me... I do not care. All I care about... is that Cybertron will still be there... when I return from the Well of All Sparks... Use my knowledge... and use it to expand your own... Make your own discoveries... and do what I could not... find a solution to our predicament... Do not let the Autobots... and Decepticons... destroy Cybertron. Be the hero... that no one will notice. The hero... who will save us all..._ "

Starscream straightened up and stared at Helix, thinking about the words the living one was delivering through the log.

" _A true hero does not care for fame... and a true scientist does not care for Shanix... and a true Cybertronian does not give up... I give you my legacy, stranger... May you use it well..._ "

Starscream didn't know what to think about this. He had just found this lab by coincidence, and now suddenly he had been given a mission by a dead bot. He didn't think for long before Helix continued, struggling even more to speak than before.

" _My time... has come... I cannot... hold on... any longer..._ "

Starscream stared at Helix, imagining the live one getting weaker and losing his grasp on life.

" _I will now... join with the AllSpark... and hope... for the future..._ "

There was a long pause before Helix uttered his final words:

"' _Til all... are one..._ "

Ten seconds passed in silence. Then there was a click. And the entry ended, along with the log.

Starscream stared a while longer at Helix on the floor. He had died alone in this room, in this very lab. No one knew he had been down here. No one remembered him. No one probably knew him any longer. Starscream had never heard of this bot before. No one remembered him after he died.

Except now he had been discovered by Starscream. His lab had been found, and his research uncovered. Whatever that research was.

"You have waited long enough, citizen," Starscream said and walked over to Helix, then scooped him up under the arms and legs. He was less than half Starscream's size, probably well under a head shorter than him.

Starscream carried Helix out of the room. This bot had stayed in his lab for over a thousand years. Now it was time to put his body to rest.

As he walked through the main lab, Starscream passed one of the strange devices he didn't know what was. Curiosity got the better of him, and he laid down Helix on an empty table to check out the device.

He turned on the datapad lying next to it. It was an instructions manual, and the device was dubbed 'contaminometer'.

"Quite a mouthful," Starscream commented and read through it.

There were two pages, one being instructions on how to use the device, and the other being a list of 'toxin levels', apparently. On the instruction page, apparently you could check your own toxin levels by offering just a drop of your own Energon to the socket in the contaminometer. It would then scan the Energon and after a minute it would tell you how toxic you were.

Starscream hummed and shrugged. "Suppose there's no harm in finding out," he muttered.

Starscream turned on the contaminometer, using the instructions. He bit onto the tip of his right thumb until it leaked. He then placed the thumb into the socket on the device, keeping it there until it started scanning, in which after he removed his thumb.

While waiting for the scan to finish, Starscream looked around more at the lab. The many metalo-plants might have been part of some experiments, though for what Starscream didn't know. Helix had mentioned saving the metalo-plants of Cybertron, the mechanimals, as well as something about pollution. Were those things tied together? He suddenly remembered the cages in the other end of the room. There must have been mechanimal specimens in there. Had they been part of his experiments too somehow? Had it been something to do with pollution?

The contaminometer emitted five small beeps, signalling it was done analyzing his Energon. Starscream looked back at the small screen on the device.

"Sixty-four percent," Starscream read aloud. "Sounds a bit high. I wonder what it means."

Starscream referred to the datapad and flipped to the page with a list of percentages. There were percentages ranging from 10 percent all the way up to 100 percent. The lowest percentage was at the bottom, and the highest, 100 percent, being at the top. Next to the percentages were text, describing how bad the toxicity was in each percentage.

Starscream looked down until he reached the interval 60-70 percent. He noticed there was a line between 10 and 20, 20 and 30, and between 40 and 50 percent. At the bottom line between 10 and 20 was the text 'Safe', at the line under 10 percent it said 'Clean', and between 20 and 30 percent it said 'Prone to illness'.

At the line between 40 and 50 percent, the text said 'Fatal zone'.

Starscream cringed at the words. And gazed at the text by the interval 60-70 percent.

_Individual may die within a hundred years._

* * *

Later, around midnight, Starscream left the ruins of Vos with Professor Helix in his arms, heading for the osmium forest in bot mode flight. After having stared at the datapad with toxin levels for several minutes, he saw his life flash before his eyes and thought about all the things he had wanted to do and what he hadn't done yet. Then he had started doubting if what the datapad had said really was true, in which after he decided to try and ignore it.

He hadn't taken Helix away immediately. Since the professor had said on the audio log that the lab was both sterile and reinforced with durabyllium - not to mention having survived the bombing of Vos that had reduced the city to a flat ruin - and due to the fact that the door could only be opened with this special ring key in a specific pattern, Starscream decided the lab may be the safest place for him to stay in on Cybertron. For the time being, at least.

So after having deposited his one Energon cube and medical supplies, he had left the lab - unlocking the hatch simply by putting the ring against another panel near the top of the stairs, he found out - and returned to the Marauders' camp, where he gathered the rest of the Energon cubes, metalo-fruits, meshetables, weapons, armor plating, oil, buffer, datapads and whatever else was there, returning them to his old camp in piles, right in front of the hatch. He had taken several turns to tuck the items in his cockpit or carry the things too big to fit in there, such as the weapons.

Afterwards, he had initiated the unlocking mechanism, now fully integrated into Starscream's memory (partly thanks to the deadly shocks he had previously suffered) and he started dumping most of the new items into the darkness. He only threw the items that could handle impacts such as Energon cubes, and things that wouldn't hurt him to step on such as the sharp weapons. He didn't want to have to carry everything down into the basement and then having to unlock it again several times, so he took a shortcut. Of sorts.

He had kept the datapads and buffer in his cockpit along with the remaining metalo-fruits and meshetables. After everything else had been dumped into the basement, he carried the sharp weapons and oil can in his arms down himself. He had walked carefully down to avoid stepping on anything, until the automatic lights turned on and he could see the hallway. Nothing seemed to have landed on the stairs, but the floor below was a huge mess.

After having deposited everything in the lab on tables, in the closet and empty cage room, clearing the floor and trying to make the lab somewhat resemble a living space, Starscream had taken two of the empty cubes in the storage and put them in his cockpit, so he could refill them when he arrived in the forest. Afterwards he picked up Professor Helix' body and ventured outside, locked the door behind him and set off in the sky.

It had taken about three hours from the moment he entered the lab to set off for the osmium forest. He hadn't thought about the datapad's revelation in all that time, but now that he was in the air and not doing anything else but aim for the osmium forest, his mind returned to the dreaded results.

"What exactly do you mean I only have a hundred years left to live in?" Starscream hissed at the body in his arms as he left the ruins of Vos. "Is it a guess or have you conducted actual research on this? If you're right, how long do I actually have left to live in? When did I only have a hundred years left? A hundred years ago? A few weeks ago? Decades ago? Why couldn't you be a little more specific?"

The corpse did not answer, obviously. Starscream sighed. "Here I am, talking to a dead bot. I wish you had been more specific on that list of yours. Maybe the truth is somewhere in the log. I suppose I will have to listen to the whole thing when I get back."

After about ten minutes, Starscream reached the osmium forest and touched down near the river. Helix wasn't a heavy bot, considering his small and lithe build and the fact that he was dead, but carrying him for over ten minutes was still a bit weary for Starscream.

"I need to get stronger," Starscream muttered to himself as he reached the river. "And I need to sharpen my claws. Too bad those Marauders didn't have a claw file. Maybe I can find something else to file them with."

Starscream put Helix down on the ground next to the river and looked around. There weren't any rocks nearby to bury him with. But perhaps the ground was soft enough to dig through?

Starscream knelt down and scratched the surface of the flat ground. Flakes of metal were scraped off. It seemed to be sodium. Perhaps forests tended to have soft metals in the ground, to better allow the seeds of metalo-plants to break through and grow up. Soft metals were also very nutritious, perhaps very important for the plants' growth.

"I suppose I will have to dig then," Starscream muttered and put more force into the task.

Despite the soft sodium, it took several minutes before an actual hole presented itself. Once he had gotten the hang of it, however, Starscream quickly managed to dig a large, suitable hole within ten minutes or so. He measured the size of the hole and compared it to Helix himself. Deeming the hole deep and large enough, Starscream picked up Helix and lowered him into the hole. After fitting him in, Starscream covered Helix with the soil until there was only a small mound to indicate the grave. It took another five minutes to completely fill and cover the grave.

Starscream pulled back and gazed at his work. It didn't feel complete yet. He went to the horizontal side of the mound and started carving into the metal with his claws. He wrote the name 'Helix', and underneath the name he wrote the text 'You will not be forgotten.'

As he finished writing, Starscream's attention was caught by his hand. He held up his hand and looked at the dirty claws. They seemed to be slightly sharper than before. Not much, but enough to be noticable. He looked at his other hand, seeing all the claws had been sharpened a bit. He looked around at the forest.

"Of course, who needs a claw file?" Starscream said and smiled. "Any metal will do. This must be how mechanimals keep their claws sharp in the wild."

Having completed his task, Starscream rose from beside the grave and walked over to the river. He knelt down and took out the two Energon cubes he had brought with him. He had counted a little over a hundred empty cubes back in the lab in total, so he had to go several rounds to fill them all. At least this meant he would have plenty of Energon to sustain himself for quite a while.

He ran the first cube through the river and filled it up, trying not to think about anything. He took the second cube and filled it up. He opened his cockpit and tucked both cubes inside.

He heard a sound from across the river and looked up. He felt a rush in his tanks. On the other side of the river stood a turbofox, likely the same turbofox he had encountered every time he had gone to the river alone, the one with the kits. Maybe even the same one he met the very first time he arrived in the osmium forest, when it was alone.

This time however, it was completely alone. No kits stood near it, no one else came out from the forest. It just stood there, staring at him with its two red eyes, not even trying to get a drink. Starscream studied its features. It seemed even more mangled than last time he had seen it. Its left ear was severed, it had three large scars on the right side of its body, and it seemed to be missing a few spikes from its tail and mane. It also had two scars across its face, between its eyes, which seemed pretty new.

 _It must have been attacked again while I was gone,_ Starscream thought to himself. _And lost the other two kits during the fight. It's all alone now... like me._

He couldn't tell its mood very well, but its ears were slightly drooping, looking a bit sad. Perhaps it had just recently lost its kits. He then remembered the lone gridwolf whose partner he had killed a few weeks ago. They were all loners now, all responsible for only their own lives and destinies.

But maybe... it didn't have to be that way.

Without thinking much about it, Starscream rose slowly to his feet, keeping his eyes on the turbofox across the river. The action caused the mechanimal to perk its ears in attention, and its staring at him became more intense.

Starscream stepped into the river, which wasn't deeper than to just below his waist, and started wading across the body of Energon. As he approached slowly, the turbofox rose its back, flared the spikes on the tail and mane, laid back its ears and snarled. Starscream continued on, undeterred by its display of hostility. Turbofoxes were one of the fastest mechanimals on the planet. If it was afraid of Starscream and saw him as a threat, it would run away instead of staying. It was merely testing him, or perhaps it thought it could scare him away from the river it regularly fueled by.

Starscream reached the shore on the other side and got on land. The turbofox took a few steps back and kept snarling, but didn't go anywhere. The two of them were only three mechanometers away from each other, closer than they had ever been before.

Starscream faced front to the turbofox and gazed down at it. He reached behind his back and grabbed his swords. The turbofox took a few steps back again and snarled even louder, its spikes flaring even more than before.

As Starscream brought out his swords and held them forth... he tossed them aside on the ground. The turbofox followed the swords, and the snarling was reduced to silence. It gazed back up at Starscream and relaxed a bit more, though the ears remained down.

Starscream took a step forward and knelt down, about two mechanometers away from the turbofox. The turbofox' mane and tail seemed to flatten down a bit, and its ears rose a bit, but it stayed put, still wary of him.

Starscream gazed calmy at the turbofox for a few seconds. Then he started softly speaking to it.

"I'm sorry for your loss," he said quietly. The turbofox' ears rose further in attention. "And now that the Autobots just recently launched the AllSpark into space... no new life will emerge, from the Well or otherwise. Those kits were your last chance to have descendants. And now they're gone."

The turbofox' ears drooped a bit, and the mechanimal sat down. It seemed sad somehow. It understood Starscream's words.

"We are all creations of Primus," Starscream said softly. "Even if you cannot speak like I do, I know you understand what I'm saying. We are all created with the ability to understand Cybertronian, mechanimals like you included. We bots merely believe only highly intelligent beings such as ourselves can fully comprehend Primus' words. But I know better now. Everyone on this world understands. It is just not everyone who is able to voice their thoughts."

The turbofox rose its ears a bit as it listened to Starscream's words. It curled its tail around itself and cocked its head at him in curiosity. It didn't seem so scared of him anymore. Starscream smiled.

"I know there's plenty of Energon and prey here," he said quietly. "But you have no company anymore. You're alone. Do you turbofoxes usually live alone? Or do you live in groups?"

The turbofox flicked its tail once. Starscream didn't know what it meant.

"I suppose you can't tell me," he said. "But I'm sure you enjoyed the company of your offspring while they were with you, right?"

The turbofox blinked at him with its glossy red eyes and flicked its ears.

"I'm sure you did," Starscream guessed. "I am currently alone. I don't think I can trust another bot for a long time. I don't like other bots. They lie, cheat and betray. They can be unpredictable and cruel. You never know if one is a friend or a foe. But you... you seem different. I don't think you would lie to me, would you?"

The turbofox cocked its head in a questionable way. Starscream smiled at the sight.

"You wild mechanimals have enough trouble trying to survive on your own. You don't need to risk yourselves by lying, cheating and betraying others. You're honest, pure, reliable. I have lived on my own out here long enough to know that's how it is. I have experienced what you are all going through. I feel different from when I still lived in civilization. I have changed. And I intend to show the world that I have."

In a slow movement, Starscream reached out his hand towards the turbofox, which got back on all four and took a step back in caution. It didn't snarl, flare or lay its ears back though. Starscream held his hand out with the backside up, his newly sharpened claws pointing down.

"I have Energon and a safe place to stay," Starscream said softly while gazing at the cautious turbofox. "I have medicine and I have leftovers of an alloygator. I will learn to hunt if you will teach me, and in return I will allow you to stay with me and be safe from predators that are chasing you."

The turbofox gazed between Starscream's face and his outstretched hand, seemingly considering its options.

"We can protect each other," Starscream continued and smiled at the turbofox. "We can assist each other. We can keep each other company. We can be partners. Will you stay with me?"

Starscream silenced and let the turbofox decide. It was generally not a good idea to present one's hand to a wild mechanimal that had lots of sharp teeth and could easily bite off one's fingers, but this was a display of trust on Starscream's end. He wasn't sure if rejecting Haze had been such a good idea, as that had been another Cybertronian and even a medic, who could have been of huge help to Starscream in his life of solitude. But he had lost faith in his fellow Cybertronians, and it would take a very long time before he would consider trusting another. Perhaps a mechanimal would be different.

After about half a minute in silence with nothing happening, the turbofox took a few cautious steps forward, eyes focused on Starscream, occasionally looking back at the hand, uncertain if anything was going to happen. Starscream held his breath and remained still, not wanting to scare the turbofox off.

The turbofox approached Starscream's hand, and hesitated. After about ten seconds of hesitation, it sniffed his fingers cautiously. Starscream felt his Spark racing faster in excitement and anticipation.

The turbofox licked Starscream's fingers with its metallic tongue, which was soft and malleable, mainly used for lapping up Energon without getting its metal coat stained. It had also used the same tongue to clean and groom its late kits, in a display of affection. And now it had touched Starscream with it, in a display of trust.

After the lick, the turbofox rubbed its muzzle against the fingers like a cybercat. It didn't purr, but it did emit a faint whimper of sorts. Starscream turned his hand so the turbofox' face was in his palm, and rubbed circles into the creature's forehead. It emitted small huffs along with the whimpering noise. It seemed to like the touch.

Starscream relaxed and let out the breath he had been holding. He smiled down at the turbofox with a soft glow in his eyes.

"I think I will call you... Turbo," Starscream decided. "Is that okay?"

The turbofox removed its head from Starscream's hand and looked up at him. It let out a small yap, its ears standing in a normal position. It seemed to be okay with the name.

Starscream hummed and rose to his legs, this time without the turbofox flinching or snarling in wariness. It just looked up at him.

"You're fast, right?" Starscream asked with a smile. "Do you think you can keep up with the fastest Seeker on Cybertron?"

Turbo yapped in response. After picking up his swords and returning them to his back, Starscream leapt into the air and reverted to jet mode. He rose above the trees and flew towards the end of the forest, though in a slow pace.

As he got out of the forest, he switched his sights to below him. Turbo was running right beneath him, and had no trouble keeping up with him. Starscream chuckled at the sight.

"I think we will do just fine together."

* * *

Starscream continued his slow pace so Turbo could keep up with him and see where he was going. Despite heading for the ruins of Vos, Turbo kept going and followed Starscream, trusting he wouldn't do anything bad. Starscream observed as the turbofox zigzagged between the buildings and obstacles with ease, until they reached the entrance to Professor Helix' lab, now Starscream's lab.

Starscream reverted to bot mode and landed in front of the hatch. Turbo arrived barely a second later and stood to attention. Starscream chuckled.

"Good girl," he praised. "This is where I live. It may not look like much, but watch this."

Turbo sat down and observed as Starscream knelt down by the hatch and inserted his ring into the keyhole, turned the lock a quarter to the left, half to the right and then all the way around to the left. The door began sliding into the ground, and Turbo sprung to her feet and yapped in surprise. Starscream rose to his feet as well and looked down at the turbofox.

"It's okay," he assured her. "We'll be safe down there. Trust me. Come on."

As the door was all open, Starscream descended into the darkness. Turbo hesitated for a moment before following suit. As the door closed behind them, Turbo turned around and ran back to the entrance, but too late to get out. She started yapping frantically and snarled. Starscream continued walking to the bottom until the automatic lights turned on.

"It's okay, calm down," Starscream said softly at the bottom of the stairs. "I'm not going to hurt you. You are one of the fiercest beings on this planet. Do you really think I, a Flier, would want to tackle someone like you in a cramped space like here?"

Turbo stopped snarling and calmed down a bit. She followed Starscream down the stairs, but looked anxiously from side to side and back at Starscream on occasion as they walked through the dimly lit hallway.

"I understand how you feel," Starscream said and side-glanced the turbofox. "I wouldn't trust a stranger like myself either if I were you. But we are not strangers, right? We know each other. We have seen each other across the river several times. You know I wouldn't hurt you. And I know you wouldn't hurt me. Because we have not hurt each other in the past."

Turbo remained silent throughout the walk to the door. Starscream unlocked it and they stepped inside without fuss. The automatic lights turned on in the lab, and Turbo took a moment to adjust her eyes to the bright light, having just been outside in the darkness.

As they stepped inside the lab, Turbo looked curiously around at the metalo-plants and tables everywhere. Other than the visor and mask, contaminometer and vacuum device, Starscream had also found small cubes containing seeds of metalo-plants, as well as a couple containing what seemed to be samples of small mechanimals, a crystal feather from a lilleth, the tip of a tail from a retrorat and other things. He had also found one of the cabinets filled with small empty cubes, apparently to be used for storing the seeds Professor Helix had mentioned in his log.

Starscream also found what seemed to be a label maker on one of the tables by the wall. There was a datapad with instructions even next to that one. Starscream scoffed silently. How incompetent did Helix think his successor would be?

Other than the instructions manuals, there were rows of datapads on shelves, some being educational books, some being blank datapads, others containing what seemed to be Helix' own notes on metalo-plants, mechanimals, Energon and pollution. There was a cup full of datapens to be used for the datapads, some being simple black or white ones, others having the feature of switching colors at the press of a button. And then there was the standard lab equipment, such as a bunsen burner, thermometers, vials, ammeters and electronic test machines and many other things.

He had not tried the computers in the monitor room yet, but from what he had read on the instructions manual it had access to the Grid, as well as a map of Cybertron and was able to detect energy signals, whether from bots, fighting or exposed Energon. That could come in handy later.

There was also a cabinet with a few audio logs in them, all blank. Starscream had taken out Helix' audio log from the closet to listen to it when he got back from the forest. Now that he had taken care of moving in the lab and returned with a few Energon cubes, along with a new friend, he could finally settle down and listen to the log.

Starscream took out the two Energon cubes he had filled in the forest, and put one on an empty table with the audio log on. The other cube was placed on the floor below, and he opened the lid to the cube. Turbo stared between the cube and Starscream.

"This is for you," Starscream said and smiled. "We will stay here for now, to rest and recover on our wounds until we can go back out there. Oh, I almost forgot."

Starscream fetched the few remains of the dead alloygator from another table where the remaining golden apples and chromium-carrots also resided on. He brought the alloygator bits to his table and broke it in half. He put one half on the floor in front of Turbo and her Energon cube. She perked at the action and immediately dug into the mesh. It was the only part of the mesh left which had not been charred from the Marauders' cooking of it. Starscream ate the cooked bits, and soon he learned he preferred the mesh raw.

"Well, we can always catch another one," Starscream said after swallowing a piece and grinned at the thought. "Should be easier with two mad fighters working together, am I right?"

Turbo didn't respond. She just continued eating the alloygator bits. Starscream shrugged and ate his. He sat on a chair by the table and pulled the audio log of Professor Helix closer, so he could press the buttons.

Despite having already heard the first two entries, Starscream decided to listen to all of them in order, so he could better understand Helix' life, research and results, as well as understanding why he had done the things he did with the lab.

And he was also anxious to find out the truth about the datapad's message to him that he was so polluted that he would die soon. And if anything could be done about it.

With a deep vent, Starscream set the audio log on autoplay, and to play from the first entry to the last entry. And every one in between.

With alloygator to feast on and an Energon cube to drink from, and company in the form of Turbo the turbofox, Starscream pressed play.

This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: I noticed I had accidentally written "The Seekers bombed specific areas of Vos" instead of Tarn, ARGH.  
> I fixed it now.


	8. Audio Log of Professor Helix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ungodly long chapter.  
> This is a different sort of chapter. Lots of science, but nothing hard, I promise;)  
> Starscream listens to the entire audio log of this Helix guy, and there are 65 entries in total, just a heads-up.  
> In future chapters, the most important elements of this chapter will be mentioned, so when more chapters arrive, it won't matter if you skip this one or not.  
> But did put in a bit of lore and self-imposed concepts, as well as discussing a specific topic that doesn't seem to be talked about, pretty much ever, in the Aligned community: pollution.  
> Since pollution is actually canon in Aligned, I decided to make the plot of this story about Cybertron's pollution in the Aligned continuity. You'll know what I mean as you read through this, and if you've watched Prime, Rescue Bots Academy (and RID, sort of, I guess) as well as the video games.  
> Originally, I did not know what this story would be about other than a lone, beastly Starscream, but I was inspired by a few comments to make it about science, the environment, and then I got the idea of pollution.  
> These are the first two important chapters in this story, setting the main plot.

Entry #1

Solar cycle 1, orbital cycle 1, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 1.

My name is Professor Helix of Vos University. Today, disaster has hit Vos.

I was conducting an experiment in my personal lab in the basement when a great explosion happened above ground. The tremor made me fall over and hit my head against one of the counters, knocking me unconscious.

After an uncertain amount of time, I finally awoke, and everything was quiet. I left the basement and found my entire house gone - along with the rest of Vos City.

I could see only smoldering ruins, raging flames and single bots darting through the sky, screaming while desperately trying to get away from the fire.

I immediately returned to my lab and firmly shut the door. I did not wish for any of my specimens to get damaged.

For it is extremely important research I am running here.

I am trying to find a way to save the metalo-plants of our world. For they are in deep decline, and it only gets worse as the years pass.

The war has been going on for millions of years now, and there's no indication that it's going to stop anytime soon. It seems Vos has been hit by the war as well.

After returning to my lab, I tried to access the Grid to find out why Vos was bombed. It would appear a mysterious missile hit the city shortly after Tarn was bombed. There are rumors going on that Winglord Starscream and Lord Shockwave of Tarn have something to do with this.

I personally do not care who's responsible for this city's destruction. In fact, I am only glad it happened.

Hopefully the destruction of Vos will reduce the amount of waste found in the surrounding Energon deposits.

I am only glad that my lab is reinforced with durabyllium. Had it not been, I would have been a goner.

Though my situation is not looking so good either. For while I am Vosian, I am but a simple Grounder, and thus Energon gathering will be a hard, may I even say an impossible task.

The good news is, I still have plenty of Energon here in my lab, normally used for experiments. But now, it seems I must conserve my Energon for the time being, until I can figure something out.

It is recommended to consume one whole standard Energon cube once per week, but I know Cybertronians can go longer without. Months, even years.

Though this requires stasis lock, and I have no time to go into stasis. I must continue my research, for the future of all of Cybertron.

For now, I will wait with my next refuelling until next month. Until then, I shall work.

* * *

Entry #2

Solar cycle 31, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 1.

Today I refuelled for the first time in a month. It was very hard, but I managed to resist the temptation for thirty solar cycles. I do not think I could have handled going another month without Energon. It seems appropriate then that I refuel once a month. That should leave me functional for another five years.

Not a lot of time, given my research. But my life is hardly more important than the future of Cybertron. If I am to only live for another five years, then I shall work to the best of my abilities, and nothing shall distract me or deter me.

In the course of the first month since Vos' destruction, it seems the Seekers have left Cybertron and been posted on an orbital space station known as Trypticon. I do not know what kind of place Trypticon Station is, but I have heard rumors over the Grid that a substance known as "Dark Energon" is produced there. Again, I do not know what this Dark Energon is, but it does not sound good.

Regardless of what Trypticon or Dark Energon are, or what Starscream has decided to do now that his dear city is gone, I will not get involved in any business going on outside.

I only left my lab once this month, about a week ago, just to see what the situation is out there. It would seem the entire city has become void of life now. Not even a single mechanimal pet or Flier in the sky did I see.

I collected as many samples of dead Vosians, domesticated mechanimals and metalo-plants as I could find. Things aren't looking good, from what I found in their CNA.

The pollution from the Energon deposits surrounding the cities are having an effect on the residents of the cities. Even if they do not consume it, the particles in the air from evaporated Energon contain these toxins, and the Cybertronians are inhaling them in their ventilation systems without knowing it.

The effect does not take place right away, as the dosages of these toxins in the gas are small, but over time, the bots will be weakened and need more Energon to survive, as the toxins drain them of energy, little by little. And refining the polluted Energon of the cities doesn't make things better.

The Energon itself may be safe to consume, but the toxic waste product from the refining process... it is destructive, to say the least. Even more so than when it was connected to the Energon itself. I fear the power of the toxic waste may soon be discovered, and in the hands of madmechs like Megatron, it would become a nightmarish bio-weapon.

This contamination in the Energon isn't just within the residents of the cities. It is within _all_ of us, including me. Only time may tell when the toxicity will take me down as well.

I must conduct further research to find out if anything can be done about the toxicity in a specimen already poisoned. It will be most important for everyone's future, both Cybertronians and Cybertron itself.

* * *

Entry #3

Solar cycle 61, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 1.

Waiting another month for refuelling seemed even harder than the first time. Hopefully I will grow used to it, eventually. I cannot afford to waste the Energon.

Over the last month, I have researched the toxicity in Cybertronians and mechanimals and have confirmed it is indeed due to industrial waste.

When comparing their samples to samples I have acquired in the wild a few years ago, I discovered the wild specimens have no toxicity in them.

Is this because of the cleaner Energon found in nature? When I saw these deposits for the first time, I could not believe my own eyes. Clean raw Energon, ready for consumption, no need for refining. It was almost too good to be true.

But it is true. There are still clean deposits in this world, and it seems everyone is unaware of it. Only I know about this, as far as I know.

I feel ashamed as a scientist and biologist that I did not know about these deposits sooner. But since discovering them, I am more determined than ever to cleanse Cybertron of pollution. However difficult and impossible that may be.

Because of my current isolation and my Primus-forsaken ground mode, my research is limited. I do have a few species of metalo-plants and test mechanimals I can study, however, though that may not last for long.

I must see why the Energon in the wild is so different from the Energon in the cities. Further experimentation is required.

* * *

Entry #4

Solar cycle 91, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 1.

Waiting for my next Energon cube was easier this month than the previous two, as I hoped. That said, I still feel deprived of energy, but hopefully my systems will get used to the new routine soon.

I decided to sow seeds of the same species in two different enviroments, a pure environment with no pollution, and a contaminated field.

So far, none of the seeds have sprouted yet, neither the one with pure Energon nor the one with crude Energon. I only recently sowed them, however, so it may take some time before either sprout.

I will continue to monitor their status.

* * *

Entry #5

Solar cycle 121, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 5, stellar cycle 1.

The seeds have by now sprouted in both their containment fields. The sprouts in the pure soil seem to be growing faster than the ones in the polluted soil, as hypothesized.

I am uncertain how the polluted Energon will affect the sprouts' growth or condition. Only time will tell.

Until then, I shall continue monitoring their status.

* * *

Entry #6

Solar cycle 151, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 6, stellar cycle 1.

The sprouts have by now grown to sufficient sizes for gathering samples to study. Again, the pure saplings seem to grow faster and have a more healthy coloration than the contaminated saplings. The polluted saplings have dark patches in random places, but more prominent on the leaves.

Now to find out how the pollution has affected the plants. I will update at a later point.

* * *

Entry #7

Solar cycle 181, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 7, stellar cycle 1.

Something amazing happened last month!

As expected, the pollution has a deteriorating effect on the metalo-plants, causing them to grow slower and get diseased.

But then I discovered something else. The Energon remaining in the polluted plants' containment field have no signs of toxicity anymore! It's all gone!

The plants must have absorbed the toxins in the Energon, purifying it. I tested a sample of the changed Energon. It has been completely refined!

Metalo-plants seem to be important in the natural refining process of Energon.

But how does it affect the plant itself? Will it die out sooner than its healthy counterpart? Will it continue to be smaller?

Further study is needed!

* * *

Entry #8

Solar cycle 211, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 8, stellar cycle 1.

Another amazing thing has happened in the last month.

Rather than deteriorating from the polluted Energon, the smaller saplings seem to have expelled the toxins from themselves somehow! How did they do that?

The saplings are still small, but the dark patches are slowly beginning to disappear. And they seem to be growing slightly faster too.

The healthy saplings are beginning to grow buds. When they bear fruit, I will use the new seeds for further research.

My discoveries these last few months are utmost interesting. I must experiment with other species to see if they do the same.

Hopefully the contaminated saplings will survive long enough to bear fruit, so I can examine the long-term effect of the pollution.

Until then, I shall wait and watch.

* * *

Entry #9

Solar cycle 241, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 9, stellar cycle 1.

The healthy saplings have now bloomed, and I am assisting them in pollinating each other. If only I had some beryllium-bees, this would have been so much easier.

Which reminds me, I have to collect samples of various mechanimals as well. If only I can find a good time to leave my lab so I can collect them.

The contaminated saplings are growing at a normal rate now, and they too have begun to grow buds. I am curious how the contamination has affected their offspring.

When they bear fruit, I shall test the new plants in healthy soil to see if the contamination has any effect on future generations.

I have also begun sowing seeds of different species of smaller plants, in contaminated and pure soil. Some have sprouted while others are still freshly sowed.

Like the tree specimens, the new plants are growing slower with contaminated Energon than with clean Energon.

I am looking forward to see if all metalo-plants cleanse Energon, or if it is only a certain species.

It could mean hope for the future of Cybertron's Energon deposits.

I will continue monitoring their status.

* * *

Entry #10

Solar cycle 271, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 10, stellar cycle 1.

The tree saplings have now both begun to grow fruits, the contaminated saplings being still smaller than the pure ones, but bearing fruit just like the rest. The fruits seem to be of random size on either side, some growing faster than others, regardless of impurities.

The fruits are still too small to examine. I will wait until they are large enough to harvest and study.

In the meantime, my other plants have all sprouted, some growing into saplings. Like with the first specimens, the contaminated plants are growing slower than their healthy counterparts.

Some plants are growing faster than others, depending on the species. As I study them, I can see the crude Energon in some of the fields growing brighter and less toxic. It is still contaminated, but the plants are indeed refining the Energon!

This explains why the Energon I found in forests is always so clean and pure. The metalo-plants are a natural refinery!

But while the Energon is purified, I am still concerned what this means for the metalo-plants themselves.

While the contaminated trees seemed to expell the pollution over time, the dark patches now having completely disappeared, they are still smaller and less developed than the healthy ones. They seem to produce fruit at the same rate as the healthy plants, however, despite the size differences. Curious.

The fruits will take some time to mature and carry seeds. When they have grown to a sufficient size, I shall harvest a few from each field and see how the contamination has affected the next generation of the plants.

Hopefully by the beginning of the next year, I will be able to go out and search for mechanimal specimens to study as well.

* * *

Entry #11

Solar cycle 301, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 11, stellar cycle 1.

The fruits are growing larger, but they still need a little more time before I can harvest them and examine their seeds.

By now, my systems have gotten used to refuelling once per month, so now I can conduct my research without a problem.

Naturally, since I am also using the Energon I refuel on, it makes it more pressing for me to ration my Energon. I still have a large stock of pure Energon, however, and I mostly use crude Energon for research, now that I have become curious about metalo-plants' ability to refine Energon. Am I saying Energon too many times?

Anyway, the other plants are growing steadily. The contaminated plants have by now completely purified the Energon they are feeding on. They too have gained dark patches on their leaves and stems. I assume those are the areas where the toxins are most potent.

I will take a few samples of the leaves to check if I am correct.

On that note, I should also take leaf samples of the contaminated tree. Maybe I will get a clue as to how it got rid of the contamination? Or if it might actually still be there?

I will continue my study.

* * *

Entry #12

Solar cycle 331, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 12, stellar cycle 1.

As I suspected, the dark patches of the contaminated plants are more potent in toxins than the lighter parts of the metal. On the contaminated tree, it seems as if the toxicity is completely gone after all. Though it does seem to have changed its molecular structure, as well as parts of its CNA...

I decided to also take leaf samples of the healthy tree and compare the results. The contamination has indeed caused a mutation in the tree and changed its CNA. It is growing at a slower rate, but while being smaller, it seems to mature at the same time as the healthy tree.

The fruits are now big enough to harvest, and I have picked a few from each tree, both the healthy ones and the contaminated ones. I studied the structure of the mesh in the healthy and contaminated fruits, and while the CNA in the contaminated fruits does seem to be different from the pure ones, it contains no toxins.

The contamination seems to have changed how the species looks and grows, but does it function differently too? How will its offspring fare? Will they be able to refine crude Energon as easily as their parent plants? How will the contamination affect them? How will they grow in pure Energon? How will they grow in Energon refined by their parent plants?

So many questions, so little time!

And I still have to find out how the metalo-plants are getting rid of the contamination!

I am so excited for what I will find out next year!

* * *

Entry #13

Solar cycle 361, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 2.

A year has now passed since the destruction of Vos. A year since I completely isolated myself within my lab. And a year since I sowed the seeds of the future.

With the new year, I have sowed a new generation of metalo-trees. I will keep the pure seeds and fruits for future studies and for conservation, as I suspect the war will most likely take a toll on Cybertron's nature.

Nobot knows I'm down here, learning things most scientists haven't figured out in their entire lifetimes! Nobot knows what I am doing for them, for everyone.

But I do not care if the world knows about me or my accomplishments. All I care about is making sure Cybertron has a future. And I will gladly lay down my life for my planet. Until then, I will do what I can, to the best of my abilities.

Anyhow, the other plants I sowed have also grown fruits or seeds. The Energon in the contaminated fields have been completely purified and the plants themselves are starting to lose their dark patches, just like with the tree specimens.

I have deduced that the metalo-plants are using some sort of natural repellant for toxins to expel them and keep the plants alive. I do not yet know how they do it, but if they can absorb toxins and expel them without jeopardizing their descendants, then this could solve all our Energon problems! Well, most, at least. I hope so.

Like I said, it's still just a theory. I have yet to see how the contaminated seeds will grow with pure Energon and more crude Energon.

If the change in CNA only affects how large the plants grow or how they look, it may not be much of a problem. Metalo-plants seem to change and evolve all the time. Perhaps what I am witnessing here is an example of evolution? Are my plants adapting to a more hostile environment?

I will continue to monitor their progress. I am planning to leave soon to obtain samples from mechanimal species as well.

I still have a few robo-rodents in my lab that are still alive, but I have yet to conduct solid research on them. My focus has been entirely on the metalo-plants, but I will need to study the mechanimals as well, to see how they develop as their enviroment changes.

And for that, I will need several species to study.

* * *

Entry #14

Solar cycle 391, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 2.

I have just returned from a rare expedition to the open landscape outside of Vos. I left the door locked before I left and made sure the mechanimals in my care had something to eat. I fed them with the fruits from my pure tree. Because of the confined space, the trees have stopped growing.

I was gone for three days, collecting various mechanimal species or CNA samples from these to study. I went to a forest of osmium-oaks that is situated nearby. It has a river of completely purified Energon. The sight took me back, reminding me of those few other times I had been out studying the natural environments of Cybertron.

Of the living mechanimals, I only took small specimens, as my lab, though large, has limited space and is not nearly big enough for anything bigger than turbofoxes to live in. And I will not bring a turbofox into my lab, it would simply destroy everything!

So instead I study lilleths, dexi-squirrels and petro-rabbits, as well as a few robotoppossums along with my helio-hamsters and guinea pigatrons already living in my lab. The birds are not happy to be trapped in small cages, nor are the other mechanimals, but I cannot let them run wild in my lab. I need them as specimens to further conduct my research.

You may be able to hear them chirp and scream in the background. It may be cruel to trap them in here, but I'm doing this for the future of Cybertron. A few lives must be sacrificed in order to restore life on the planet as a whole.

For now, I am giving them fuel so they can recover on the scary event of capture. Until then, I shall continue my study of the metalo-plants.

The new seeds have by now sprouted, in both fields. Like last year, the seeds in the contaminated field are growing slower than the ones in the pure field. The seeds in the pure field seem to be growing at a normal rate, like the pure plants of first year. The ones in the contaminated field seem to be growing about as slow as their contaminated parent plants did.

The growth rate seems to be the same as the specimens of year one. Whether this means they will grow to the same extent as their parents or if both will grow smaller is yet to be seen.

I suppose I will find out by the end of the year.

Like with the trees, I have also sowed new seeds of the other plants and harvested the old ones for study and consumption. As metalo-fruits and meshetables have a quantity of Energon within them, it makes it easier for me to endure each long month of not refuelling. I could potentially survive longer down here, as long as I have enough Energon for the plants.

I will study how the new plants will fare in a polluted environment, if it has any effect on their base CNA, if the dark patches that are to come will disappear or stay, and whether or not the contaminated fruits are safe to eat.

For the first generation of contaminated plants, their fruits seemed stable and edible.

When the next batch of fruits arrive, I will have to test their quality on the test mechanimals. Perhaps even test the contaminated leaves to see if they have an effect on them.

Until then, I will continue my study.

* * *

Entry #15

Solar cycle 421, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 2.

The second generation of trees are growing bigger, though they are still small saplings. The saplings in crude Energon are starting to develop those toxic dark patches on their leaves and stems. At the same time, the Energon seems to be getting brighter and more pure. The two changes seem to be linked.

The saplings in the pure Energon continue to grow at a normal rate and still do not show any sign of toxicity. The results so far seem promising.

The other plants are also growing at a normal rate in the pure Energon, while the ones in polluted Energon grow as slowly as their ancestors did. The polluted ones are also growing dark patches and seem to be purifying the Energon they stand in.

I will have to continue making new generations until I can be sure that the contamination mutation is indeed not inheritable and does not change the species as a whole, but only the individual's CNA.

Five years simply does not seem like enough time, and it probably isn't either. Hopefully nothing will change over the next three years. If it does, then I'm back to square one.

I am anxious to test out the contaminated plants on the mechanimals I have, but it still will take time. By my calculations, like last year, it may take another seven months before these trees begin to bear fruit, and a few more before they can be harvested for study and a new generation.

I also have to study closely to see what happens to the toxins the metalo-plants are expelling. After all, nothing just disappears. It simply changes to a different...

...wait. If they are expelling the toxins from themselves, to both purify the Energon, the soil and themselves... does that mean the toxins are now in the air around me?

Oh dear. This is a most concerning thought I have just gained. I must conduct further research and test the air quality in here, to make sure I am not walking around in a death field.

I do hope I am wrong. Please, Primus, let me be wrong...

* * *

Entry #16

Solar cycle 451, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 2.

I have bad news.

As I feared, the expelling of the toxins from the metalo-plants themselves has led to poor air quality around me. I have been venting toxic air this entire year I have been isolated down here. Who knows what it has done to my systems? Or worse yet, what it has done to the mechanimals I keep around here?

The Energon is purified, the soil is cleansed and the metalo-plants have cured themselves. But the air has become toxic. Cybertronian life can only just barely handle these toxins. If organic creatures were to enter here, they would succumb immediately.

This means that while the natural environments are safe, the air quality has become so bad, no organic life can live here or even visit here. Not that it really matters, since organic life was never supposed to live here anyway. But even if we Cybertronians do not rely on oxygen, nitrogen or hydrogen to survive like organic aliens do, the toxins in the air can still affect our internal systems. It simply happens much, much slower to us than to organics.

My next project will be to test if the toxins inside a living creature can be purified within the creature's lifetime, or if we're all doomed the moment we vent in this polluted air. Hopefully the former.

Well, I suppose there are no better test subjects than myself and the mechanimals with the air in here.

Oh, right, the report on the metalo-plants.

The saplings and smaller plants are all beginning to expell the toxins from themselves and losing their dark patches, little by little. They seem to be doing it at approximately the same rate as their ancestors. Promising for the plants and the Energon, but again, an uncertain future for mechanimals and Cybertronians.

Perhaps now would be a good time to test the contaminated leaves on the mechanimals.

I will keep you updated.

* * *

Entry #17

Solar cycle 481, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 5, stellar cycle 2.

I took samples from the contaminated plants while their leaves still had those dark patches of toxins on them. Without the base plant, the leaves are now unable to expel the toxins from themselves.

I fed a leaf to one of the helio-hamsters. At first nothing seemed to happen, but over the course of the next few days, it started to get sick, and a week after consumption, the subject died. Contaminated metalo-plants seem to be deadly as long as they have those dark patches.

I also fed a leaf with lighter dark patches and thus less potent toxins to another helio-hamster. It was fine for a week before getting sick and died two weeks after consumption.

When the contaminated plants had gotten rid of all its dark patches, I fed another leaf to a third helio-hamster. This time, the mechanimal survived with no repercussions. It is still alive today, three weeks after consumption, and looking quite healthy. This seems promising.

I also fed one of each mechanimal with some Energon refined by the metalo-plants. No deaths. No diseases. No repercussions.

I fed one of the guinea pigatrons with Energon halfway done with purification. It survived for a week before falling ill and dying the next day.

The tree saplings have now both grown buds at approximately the same time and rate. The saplings in the now refined Energon have expelled all their toxins into the air.

It will be interesting to see how this new generation have been affected by new contamination or a pure environment, as well as how their seeds will grow and fare the next year.

So far both sets of specimens seem to be growing at the same rate and size as their ancestors did. Hopefully the next generation will do the same.

I still have to figure out what to do about the air quality in here. Perhaps if I can collect it somehow to study, maybe even purify it somehow...

Hmm... could it perhaps be possible to contaminate a cube of pure Energon with the bad air quality in here? How would that affect the Energon? How would it affect the metalo-plants? How would it further affect the air quality afterwards?

It seems I have just come up with my next project. That is, along with my other project, to test how the toxins in living beings can be expelled.

Two projects at once. As well as my main project. Oh dear.

Hopefully I can make a schedule out of this. This is utmost important and interesting.

Until next time.

* * *

Entry #18

Solar cycle 511, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 6, stellar cycle 2.

By using a special vacuum device, I have managed to collect all the contaminated air in the lab. I did an air quality test afterwards and confirmed the air is now sterile.

The polluted air now resides within the vacuum, and I have inserted the pollution into one of the refined Energon cubes. As expected, the color of the Energon has changed from bright cyan to cyan, dark blue and black. The pure Energon has now become crude. I will use this for my next batch of plants, when the trees bear fruit and I can harvest the seeds. Then I will know if my theory is correct.

I deduce I have three or four more years to live in until I run out of Energon, or until the pollution destroys me. I hope that will be enough time to check if my theory is correct.

The trees have started to bloom, so it is now time to help them get pollinated. I really could use some beryllium-bees. Unfortunately those would make my research harder to conduct. Even with a hive I could close on my own. I do not need more mouths to feed and care for than necessary. Getting more will simply make my research harder to get conducted.

Despite how long I have lived in solitude now, I feel no loneliness or regret of staying behind while everyone else evacuated. This is what I was meant to do. This is who I was meant to be. An invisible hero. One that fights for the future of Cybertron without anyone knowing.

Why do I keep making these audio-logs, anyway? Well...

I suppose I make them to keep myself sane. And, perhaps, because I believe it is important that anyone who finds this will know what to do, when my time comes. Because I know I will not survive to save the planet. I will only survive long enough to provide the necessary knowledge to pass on to the next researcher.

Let the warriors fight their battle in the field. The real hero stands right here, staring at the plants growing. Really. Slowly.

It may not seem exciting to a soldier, but to a scientist like me, this is where the real battle takes place. This is where the real excitement is.

Knowledge is everything. Remember that.

Strength isn't everything. You must be smart and considerate. You must use your head.

And don't let anybot tell you you aren't important. Because you are. You are the most important bot on this world. You are the one who's really saving everyone's lives by doing this. And you are sacrificing your very self to do this. And no one will ever know.

Except for the one who eventually finds this log.

I will end this entry now, before I get carried away.

* * *

Entry #19

Solar cycle 541, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 7, stellar cycle 2.

I have harvested the seeds and fruits of the smaller plants and begun the next batch hereof. This time, I will use the cube of Energon I contaminated with the air pollution in the lab to test how the plants will purify this, and later how the air quality will be afterwards.

Since the smaller plants grow faster than the trees, this will make for quicker research, though the trees are also important in this project.

Speaking of the trees, their flowers have turned into small fruits, growing at approximately the same rate, even between the tall healthy trees and the smaller impure ones. So far, things seem to be as they were last year.

I forgot that it didn't take an entire year to get mature fruits with seeds from the last batch. It only took nine months, though I got confused by the number of my log entries that I thought it took an entire year for these plants to grow. What a relief!

This means I have more time to create new generations in the time I have left to live in. The smaller plants take only a few months to be ready to get harvested, so that's even better.

I have a few more cubes of crude Energon gathered from the polluted deposits in the cities. For now, though, I will use the one cube I contaminated myself on the smaller plants' new seeds.

I hope my hypothesis is correct. I suppose I will see in four months, when the new smaller plants are ready to be harvested.

* * *

Entry #20

Solar cycle 571, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 8, stellar cycle 2.

The fruits on the trees are growing bigger and are almost ready to be harvested. I can't tell you how excited I am for this batch. Both sets of specimens are growing at normal rates now, both growing the same size as their parent plants did last year. Both are completely toxin-free.

The new smaller plants have sprouted and are growing steadily. The plants growing in the field contaminated by my own toxic Energon cocktail are growing at a slower rate than those growing in pure Energon, as the other batches have. So far, nothing seems to have changed from the other generations.

I am beginning to see dark patches steadily forming on the leaves of the small plants. The Energon is still crude, but it seems to be slowly losing its darker colorations.

I wish I could do more experiments and research on the mechanimals I have in my care, but until the Energon is refined and the plants bear fruit, there is not much for me to do with those little fellows.

Thankfully, the trees should be harvestable in the next month, and I can start another batch.

Should I use one of the already crude Energon cubes, or should I wait until the Energon in the smaller plants' containment fields has been purified so I can examine the air quality? So far, the air still seems to be sterile, but it will most certainly change.

Then again, there was so much pollution trapped in the air here for an entire year, so even from a single cube, the quality should still be cleaner now than before.

Again another example of why it's a shame I don't have enough time left to live in. Though hopefully I can figure out if what I'm thinking is just a theory or if it's fact.

There are still three more months until the smaller plants can be harvested, though at this rate, they should purify the Energon by next month, and then expel the toxins the next month. That's two months until I can sow the next batch of seeds from the fruit trees...

No matter. I still have a month to decide. Until then, I shall simply observe and take notes.

* * *

Entry #21

Solar cycle 601, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 9, stellar cycle 2.

The fruits from the trees are now big enough to be harvested. As with the previous batch, these fruits are completely toxin-free, in both the specimens growing in pure Energon and in those that grew in contaminated Energon. Nothing seems to have changed from the previous two generations, which seems very promising.

The smaller plants have now attained their signature dark patches in the contaminated fields, and the Energon in them seems to have been purely refined. I tested some of it on one of the lilleths, but I have yet to see results, though a week has already passed and the bird is still alive and well.

I have not yet tried the refined Energon by the plants myself. While I can see it is clean, I hesitate, for I do not wish to jeopardize my health, given how little time I have left already. So I will merely continue to fuel on these factory-refined cubes.

Now that the Energon has been refined by the plants, they will be spending the next month expelling the toxins. Doing that should make the air quality in here worse.

For that reason, I have decided to postpone the sowing of the next generation of fruit tree seeds. First I need to see if the pollution in the new air creates a less contaminated cube or if the contamination will be the same.

Naturally, as the air quality was immensely bad before, this contamination will most certainly be an improvement. Therefore, I must recycle the pollution over the next half year, to see if the quality of the air particles will improve in any way.

For now, at least, it seems the experiment with the fruit trees has proven that metalo-plants will purify and refine crude Energon, absorb the toxins and then expel them into the air to purify themselves. The metalo-plants do not absorb the pollution in the air, unlike us Cybertronians and mechanimals.

I have also confirmed that despite the reduced growth in contaminated metalo-plants, their offspring are not affected by the pollution and will grow at normal rate. Fruits from a cured contaminated metalo-plant are also pure and completely safe to eat.

These discoveries have never been made before in the known history of Cybertron. This could change everything.

This could save Cybertron.

Now I know the metalo-plants can be saved, as can the Energon. But can _we_ be saved? Can the mechanimals?

Do the metalo-plants purify the air quality as well? How many times does a crude Energon cube have to be refined before there is no more pollution hanging in the air?

These are new questions I must answer.

For now, I will focus only on the smaller plants that grow and mature faster than the fruit trees.

I will most certainly get results faster this way.

Maybe even find a solution before I go offline.

* * *

Entry #22

Solar cycle 631, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 10, stellar cycle 2.

I have stored the seeds of the fruit trees I have grown away into small boxes with the previous generations. They are the ones labelled "Pygmy palladium-papaya".

Now I can focus my entire attention on the meshetables I am growing. As expected, the dark patches have by now disappeared, which means the toxins have all been expelled into the air in this lab. I will need to collect it with my vacuum device later.

The lilleth I fed with purified Energon is still alive and well. I gave some of the robo-rodents samples of the cured leaves, and they are all still alive and healthy as well.

By next month, the plants should yield seeds and fruits that I can create a new batch with, using a new cube of pure Energon that I will contaminate with the pollution now gathered in the air around me.

Naturally, the air pollution will not be as dramatic as before, but I will use its quality as a basis for the next batch. When the next batch absorbs the toxins and expel them into the air, I will test the quality of the new air to see if anything has changed.

If nothing changes by then, I will be back to square one.

If something changes... then there may be hope.

For now, I must keep my plants and mechanimals... and myself... alive.

* * *

Entry #23

Solar cycle 661, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 11, stellar cycle 2.

I have collected the polluted air in my vacuum machine and tested its quality. As expected, it is much cleaner than earlier, but then again, this time I did use only one cube and did not let more pollution accumulate. The real test begins now.

I have contaminated a new cube of factory-refined pure Energon. The color is still dark, but instead of black, the darkest patches are merely very dark blue. Is that a sign?

The plants are starting to bear fruit and expel seeds. I will collect them and start a new batch, which I will then use this new crude cube on.

If the metalo-plants can cleanse the air over several generations, perhaps Cybertron's toxic atmosphere could eventually be purified, if we plant and sow enough metalo-plants around the globe, rather than just felling forests and jungles to make way for more cities.

There does seem to be a connection between city pollution and purity in nature. As well as a connection between the decline in forests and the higher pollution in the air and Energon around the cities.

I sincerely hope my theory is correct.

I suppose I will find out in four months.

* * *

Entry #24

Solar cycle 691, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 12, stellar cycle 2.

The seeds I have sowed and contaminated with crude Energon have now sprouted and begun to grow. Like the previous generations, the contaminated plants are growing slower than the healthy ones. So far, they seem identical aside from size difference, as usual. By next month, the contaminated plants should have developed dark patches as they absorb the toxins in the Energon. And across the month after that, they should expel that toxin and cure themselves.

And then I will know if I am correct.

I feel like I am wasting those mechanimals I have trapped in cages next room. Soon, I will think of a way to make use of them.

Even with a solution to improving the current air quality, I have yet to find out if those contaminated with pollution will decline indefinitely, or if something can be done to expel that toxin from our bodies and thus save us. Make us stronger.

Perhaps the toxin is in our very Energon and not just our metal?

That will be my next project. My next experiment.

* * *

Entry #25

Solar cycle 721, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 3.

Two years have now passed since the destruction of Vos and my isolation in this lab.

The plants have now purified the Energon and absorbed the toxins within themselves. The dark patches are as prominent as ever.

As for my new project, I have begun with the first experiment.

I have studied my own Energon as well as the Energon of the wild mechanimals I captured and the ones I have domesticated.

The mechanimals live in a sterile room seperate from this one, so the wild ones have not been affected by the poor air quality there has been in here lately. I have, on the other hand.

The Energon of the wild mechanimals seems void of toxins, while my domesticated robo-rodents have traces of toxins within them, having lived in the city their entire lives.

As for my own Energon... it doesn't look good. I have more toxins in my Energon than all my test subjects combined. Maybe even more than my metalo-plant specimens have had in them.

I did not feel weak before, but now that I'm looking at my stats... I'm beginning to feel a bit dizzy. Of course, it could just be my hypochondria.

Regardless, this level of pollution in my own Energon is not a good sign. Another reason why I think I do not have long left to live in, even though I feel nowhere near death. Even despite how long I wait with refuelling.

I have a new theory. And it too involves metalo-plants.

I am not sure if this will work, but I will have to try.

Luckily I still have leftover metalo-fruits and meshetables from previous generations, all pure or cured. I will have to test my contaminated guinea pigatrons and other robo-rodents.

I may even have to conduct experiments on myself, seeing as how I need it the most.

I will update soon.

* * *

Entry #26

Solar cycle 751, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 3.

The dark patches of the plants have now disappeared, which means the pollution is in the air once again. Both Energon and metalo-plants are now refined and cured.

I will collect the air soon enough and check its quality before contaminating another Energon cube to see if anything has changed since last time.

In the meantime, I have fed two of the contaminated guinea pigatrons with pure and cured metalo-fruits and meshetables respectively every day. Both seem to have the same effect.

The guinea pigatrons' immune systems seem to be improving, as do their armor quality. Furthermore, the level of toxins in their Energon seems to be decreasing!

It's not much, it's barely five percent improvement... but it's something. Even if it's a small improvement, it's still improvement.

I will have to further test this on more individuals, including myself.

I have tested the quality of my own Energon once a week for the past month, while I do not eat anything and have started to wear a filter mask. Nothing has either improved nor worsened. It is constant.

Now, over the next month, I will eat one metalo-fruit or meshetable every day and see if I make any improvements as time passes.

For this, I will again have to postpone sowing the new seeds, as I will need the air in here to be sterile for precise results.

I will end this entry now, so I can check the quality of the air and the new cube I am going to contaminate, as well as test my own Energon yet again to get a basis.

I hope dearly this works...

* * *

Entry #27

Solar cycle 781, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 3.

Good news. Very good news, actually.

I collected all the pollution in the air in this lab and read its quality. As I hoped, the quality of the air has improved since last time, though not by much.

I then contaminated another cube of pure Energon. This time, the darkest color of the pollution was almost identical to the indigo among the cyan in the Energon. The colors are getting brighter. Not by much, but there is definitely an improvement taking place here!

Furthermore, I did as I said I would in the last entry and consumed one metalo-fruit or meshetable every day over the last month.

Like the previous month, I did a weekly check on my own Energon, and the toxins have decreased by five percent now! It's still a small change, considering how much pollution there is in my system, but still, can you believe it?

Metalo-plants can remove pollution, whether it's from Energon in natural deposits or within Cybertronians and mechanimals.

By contaminating Energon and feeding the metalo-plants with it, they absorb the impurities and refine the Energon, making it clean and safe to consume.

Furthermore, eating metalo-plants seems to have the same effect. The metalo-fruits or meshetables absorb the toxins from one's Energon, though only a small percentage, and then the toxins are released through one's venting.

But how do metalo-plants convert toxins into free particles that do not pollute their surroundings? What kind of process goes on inside those metalo-plants when they convert poison into clean air?

It is now clear to me that it has become more important than ever to save the metalo-plants and plant and sow more of them around the globe.

I have learned so much these last two years, probably more than the highest arch-scientists in the most pristine academies have ever learned in their entire lives.

I must now see how many times I have to use the same pollution derived from the original vacuum before the air quality is absolutely all clean.

It may take a while. But I will get there eventually.

If I survive long enough, that is.

* * *

Entry #28

Solar cycle 811, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 3.

I have now finally sowed new seeds and used a contaminated cube on one of the batches. The plants have already sprouted by now. By next month, they will once again absorb the toxins of the Energon.

In the meantime, while I am noting how many times it takes to completely purify the air and Energon in the deposits, I will also test how much time will pass until a contaminated individual is toxin-free, by consuming metalo-plants every day.

Luckily, I still have my palladium-papaya trees from the first two batches. They have begun to bear fruit once again, and I have already harvested a good deal of them. These will help with this next experiment I have, along with my ever-growing meshetables.

Since palladium is a precious metal, it should last for a good long time before rusting, so I can focus my attention on only feeding one or two individuals with contamination. And perhaps myself as well.

So far, I am testing two of my guinea pigatrons, the ones whose Energon I managed to improve as I mentioned last time. By this time, their Energon has improved in quality a little bit more, though toxins can still be found in their streams.

I have not continued feeding myself with metalo-plants yet, as I want to see if it is possible to purify a creature with lower toxin levels first. If they can be completely purified, then perhaps there is hope for all of us. Maybe even me.

Or maybe not me. For I may already be too far gone to be saved, especially if the improvements continue at this rate.

This just goes to show that it takes years to create something, seconds to destroy it, and then even more years to fix the problems.

Even if I cannot be saved, hopefully the future of Cybertron can be.

There used to be an old saying. "The seeds of the future lie buried in the past". I never quite understood what that meant, neither did anyone else.

Now, I think I am beginning to understand somehow.

Only by burying the seeds in the past can the future be saved. Or am I getting this all wrong?

Does the saying not have anything to do with actual seeds? Is it simply a mere metaphor?

Well, I am a biologist, not a philosopher.

As long as I can help Cybertron, it does not matter what these sayings mean.

* * *

Entry #29

Solar cycle 841, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 5, stellar cycle 3.

The plants have now grown bigger and absorbed the toxins of the Energon, gaining dark patches and purifying the Energon. Now they should begin to expel the toxins into the air, hopefully resulting in cleaner air than before.

I know I said last month that I wanted to test how many times it would take for a single polluted Energon cube to be completely toxin-free along with the air quality, but I just gained an idea for another experiment.

I still have the remains of my dead mechanimal test subjects, those who have died from poisoning. A thought occured to me last month: What happens to the pollution within a dead mechanimal or Cybertronian?

Normal poison or venom from certain species of mechanimals simply dissipate once the victim is deceased, sometimes it is re-absorbed by the venomous or poisonous predator when eaten. But this is pollution from indrustrial waste and warfare, not biological. What happens to a carcass polluted with toxic waste?

I did an examination from one of the helio-hamsters that died from eating toxic leaves. Even with how much time has passed since its death now, it still has the pollution within itself. My guess is that if a predator such as a turbofox was to eat this helio-hamster, the predator would get poisoned too, maybe even die from it.

But if mechanimals and Cybertronians die before they can be cured of pollution, what happens then? How does the toxic remnants get handled? What happens to the body after death?

To answer this question, I decided to grind the helio-hamster into powder and checked to see if the pollution was still there and at the same levels. Which it was.

Afterwards, I decided that, instead of sowing new seeds, I placed the toxic powder into the pots of two of my healthy palladium-papaya trees. I wanted to see what would happen when polluted soil from a mechanimal is introduced to a tree that is already grown.

Furthermore, I have given one of the trees pure Energon to feed on, while the second tree has been given contaminated Energon from industrial waste.

Now, a month later, both of the trees are sporting dark patches on their leaves like they did when they were growing up. The patches on the tree in pure Energon are lighter than the ones on the other tree, in polluted Energon. Curious.

Furthermore, the trees are also starting to carry new fruits, though they are still too small to be harvested yet. The new fruits, as well as some of the older fruits, seem to be getting dark spots as well. I wonder what this means for the seeds inside?

At least from the last few months, I have learned that metalo-plants _do_ indeed cleanse the air slowly by absorbing toxins from Energon and then expelling them.

Still, I wonder _why_ they do it...?

* * *

Entry #30

Solar cycle 871, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 6, stellar cycle 3.

The smaller plants have now expelled the toxins and lost their dark patches. I will collect the polluted air at a later point.

The trees have also lost their dark patches on the leaves, which means they have expelled the toxins and cleansed both the Energon and the soil they were in. I tested the soil, and it is as clean as the Energon.

The fruits, however, still retain the dark patches and they do not seem to be going away. They may still be toxic.

Some of the fruits are now big enough to be harvested, and I decided to examine them. The mesh contains potent poison, and the seeds seem to be contaminated as well. I wonder what this means for the plants that grow from the seeds?

I decided to feed one of the guinea pigatrons with one of the contaminated fruits. It lived for a few days before growing ill and dying the next day.

Curious, I decided to sow some of the seeds from the toxic fruits. I placed some in pure Energon and some in contaminated Energon. They have not sprouted yet, but probably will within the next month.

Other than this new project of mine, I have also decided to test out how the air pollution affects the offspring of mechanimals.

Since my robo-rodents are fast breeders, I used some retrorats for this side project. Two retrorats were caught in the wild and are toxin-free, two others were caught in the city and contain pollution. I decided to breed them with each other and have all four carry.

I bred the two healthy retrorats for healthy offspring, the two contaminated ones for contaminated offspring, and then I bred one healthy and one poisoned with each other. I want to see if a healthy retrorat carrying a poisoned one's podlings will have healthy or contaminated offspring, and vice versa.

Furthermore, I have managed to cure one of my helio-hamsters from pollution. I decided to breed that one as well, to see what happens to its offspring when it has been polluted but isn't anymore.

I also decided to breed a pair of healthy dexi-squirrels and then feed one of them with mild pollution. Now I am feeding it with pure metalo-plants every day to see if I can cure it before its offspring emerge, so I can see what happens to them.

The carrying robo-rodents have been carrying for a month now and will likely deliver next month. Then I shall see how their offspring fare, as well as get new test subjects.

If an individual cannot be cured of pollution, hopefully the future generations can at least be secured.

Hopefully.

* * *

Entry #31

Solar cycle 901, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 7, stellar cycle 3.

The contaminated tree seeds have by now sprouted, and both have dark patches already from emergence. Both sets are growing much slower than their healthy ancestors did, but particularly the ones in contaminated Energon.

It will be interesting to see how polluted seeds will fare and what will happen with the Energon that is contaminated. How well will this impaired plant absorb the toxins, if at all? How will their offspring fare?

Furthermore, I have harvested the smaller plants for their fruits and seeds for new batches. I have also collected the polluted air and contaminated a new cube with it. It seems to be less polluted than last time, despite the additional pollution from the soil I made, along with more polluted cubes. It is almost the same amount as last time, however.

Also, my robo-rodents have now delivered their offspring. Most of them are either dead or abnormal.

The podlings from contaminated parents and parents that were poisoned during the carrying are all dead. The ones from parents that are both healthy and contaminated are alive but also either sick or with abnormal features, here among extra or fewer limbs, senseless or paralyzed. Only the offspring of healthy parents seem to be healthy themselves.

This does not bode well for the future of the mechanimals of this world. However, the helio-hamster that used to be contaminated but was cured, has yielded living, healthy offspring. This is good news, at least.

It would seem contaminated individuals either yield dead or handicapped offspring. They may as well have been rendered infertile by the toxins.

Upon seeing their offspring as dead, one of the parent retrorats ate its young. It was a gruesome, yet fascinating sight to see. It would seem that the offspring inherit its parents' toxicity, for the infant-eater died today, a week later.

So it would seem that only healthy and cured individuals can yield functional offspring. The only upside to this is that Cybertronians mostly emerge from the Well of All Sparks and only rarely emerge from other bots. Sparklings are a sign of very strong love and close bonds, however, so some Conjunx Endura decide to get them out of love and the desire to care for something small and vulnerable, and which is made from themselves.

But if these bots are polluted just like these mechanimals, they may be in for great disappointment and tragedy instead. Personally, I do not see a problem with this, as it is unnatural for bots to be created this way.

But even if we Cybertronians do not have a serious problem with the pollution when it comes to new generations of bots, it is still concerning that it poses a threat to the mechanimals of this world.

Mechanimals turn into soil when they die. This soil becomes a part of Cybertron itself and feeds the metalo-plants, and thus us. The living metal we are all made of comes from Cybertron itself. Cybertron recycles the metal gained from dead mechanimals and metalo-plants to create new bodies for new Sparks emerging from the Well.

Unlike us Cybertronians, mechanimals do not emerge from the Well. They have Sparks, but they are not the same as our Sparks. Most mechanimals either do not transform, or they transform into something other than bots, like how singlehorns turn into rockets, or petro-rabbits turn into spheres.

If the mechanimals die out, they do not come back. Not like we Cybertronians do. They will be forever gone. The only thing left of them will be their CNA.

If the mechanimals do not return, there will be no new metal for new Cybertronians to get frames from. There will thus be a limit to how many Cybertronians will be able to emerge at a time. Our species as a total might even go extinct.

This is the reason why we must conserve our metalo-plants and mechanimals, even if only CNA samples of them.

Without nature, Cybertron will end up devoid of life. Regardless of the AllSpark's power.

I will not let that happen. So I will continue to fight and research.

* * *

Entry #32

Solar cycle 931, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 8, stellar cycle 3.

The contaminated tree seeds have now grown a little bigger, but the saplings are much smaller at this point than their ancestors were. Furthermore, while the seeds in the contaminated Energon does seem to be absorbing the toxins from the Energon, it isn't much, and since they already have dark patches, they instead seem to be getting even more black, with only a few light patches here and there. The other saplings in the clean Energon have not changed how they look.

Next month, I will hopefully see how well the contaminated saplings have absorbed the toxins from the Energon. Hopefully it will be clean, just taking a bit longer than its ancestors.

The surviving robo-rodent podlings are growing well, but they may first be fully mature next month and thus ready to breed again. I see no pollution in the ones from the cured helio-hamster. There is some pollution in the handicapped ones, but I suspect I may only be able to breed the blind and deaf ones to see how their offspring will fare. The paralyzed and abnormal ones appear to be infertile, as far as I've examined them.

If the contaminated robo-rodents can get healthy offspring, perhaps there is hope for future generations after all. If their offspring are also all handicapped, I may have to accept the possibility that only healthy or cured individuals can have functional descendants.

I will learn what happens in three or four months before I can draw my conclusion with the mechanimals.

As for the metalo-plants, I still have to see how future generations of contaminated seeds will fare, and if the pollution can be bred out of them over several generations.

As long as it's possible to breed the pollution out of either metalo-plants or mechanimals, there is hope for nature on Cybertron.

I do still also have to figure out what happens to the toxins absorbed by the metalo-plants, however. And I also have to figure out _why_ they absorb the toxins and slightly purify the air in the progress.

And finally, I have to figure out how the pollution in the air can be completely purified. It is certain that collecting all the polluted air manually to then contaminate Energon with, to afterwards get absorbed and expelled by metalo-plants, to only _slightly_ purify the expelled air, is very bothersome.

I wonder if there is an easier solution to this problem...?

* * *

Entry #33

Solar cycle 961, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 9, stellar cycle 3.

The new robo-rodents are now mature and I can use them to breed a new generation, so I can see how the handicapped retrorats' offspring will fare. I have bred them with the healthy youngsters.

It will take another two months before I will know the results.

In the meantime, the contaminated tree saplings have grown a bit larger, but are still growing slowly. The saplings in contaminated Energon seem to have absorbed all the pollution in the Energon, but they still have not expelled it into the air. I ran a test on the Energon afterwards, and it seems to still have a very small percentage of pollution in it, however.

It may take another month for the saplings to expel the toxins into the air. So I will have to wait another month with an idea I recently came up with.

I want to gather the polluted air so I can test if Energon can pick up the pollution from the air, rather than just me pumping the Energon with the waste.

After all, the pollution in the Energon can't _all_ be from solid or liquid waste. There must be some from the air as well.

I also still do not know why the metalo-plants absorb toxins in the first place. Nor why there seems to be less toxins in the air after absorption and expelling.

Are the metalo-plants converting some of the particles in the pollution to something they can use in their frames? And if so, then what?

So many questions, so few answers...

* * *

Entry #34

Solar cycle 991, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 10, stellar cycle 3.

The contaminated saplings have now expelled the toxins into the air, but they still retain their original black patches from emergence. I collected the pollution in the air in my vacuum device. The toxin levels seem to be higher than before, which is concerning.

Instead of pumping the pollution into an Energon cube, I have deployed a special tall cube, filled it halfway with Energon and then inserted the pollution into the free space at the top.

The Energon seems to be getting contaminated slightly, though it only seems to absorb the bottom of the polluted air in the cube. The pollution at the top of the cube remains untouched.

This certainly shows how there can be so much pollution in Cybertron's atmosphere yet it isn't all absorbed by the Energon around the globe. If only the lowest parts of the polluted air gets absorbed, as a haze crawling across the land, then there is still a vast majority of pollution trapped everywhere else in the airspace of Cybertron.

This is most troublesome. I had hoped the Energon itself would absorb all the pollution regardless of its altitude, but alas, it is not that easy after all.

If it had been that easy, the pollution would not have been as big a problem as it is.

The metalo-plants do not absorb the pollution in the air, only via metal soil and Energon. The Energon only absorbs the pollution closest to the ground. The metal soil only obtains pollution via dead mechanimals when they rust and disintegrate.

So how do we get rid of the pollution in the air? How do we cleanse Cybertron's atmosphere? Is it impossible? Have we already doomed our planet with all our industry and warfare? Is Cybertron destined to be a dead world?

As far as air pollution goes, I seem to have reached a dead end. If collecting the polluted air manually is what it takes, then only Fliers will be able to do this.

But there's no way anyone would help me with this, as times are now. Everyone would rather fight a war or scurry around in the wild or the ruins of cities than actually helping our planet.

I do not believe Cybertron can be saved anytime soon. The war will have to end before Cybertron can be properly cared for. Everyone will have to settle their differences so they can help our world.

Even if Cybertron cannot be saved right now, I can still make sure that it can be in the future. No matter how far into the future it is.

* * *

Entry #35

Solar cycle 1021, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 11, stellar cycle 3.

The contaminated trees have now begun to grow buds, despite being much smaller than their ancestors. Both sets' buds are getting dark spots as well. Soon I will be able to see how the mutation has affected these trees' offspring.

Furthermore, the handicapped robo-rodents have now birthed their podlings. As far as I've examined them so far, the podlings seem to have low levels of toxins in them, but it is too soon to tell if they too are handicapped or not. Their eyes and ears are still closed, and it may take another week or two to see the results.

Hopefully breeding the handicapped retrorats with healthy ones will have resulted in at least some of the podlings being healthy. If they are all handicapped, then there may be nothing I can do to improve their family line. Though perhaps I could try feeding them with pure metalo-plants and then see if that will remove the toxins from their bodies, both the handicapped parents and their offspring with mild toxicity in them.

I recently did some research on the Grid, and I came across something interesting.

Across certain regions of Cybertron, acid rain sometimes occurs and corrodes the ground, as well as contaminating natural Energon deposits. Acid rain isn't uncommon on Cybertron, in fact the rainiest place on Cybertron is the Acid Wastes where it rains acid half the year around. Despite this, however, it is said that certain species of metalo-plants live there, such as azaleas.

In fact, most metalo-plant species seem either resistant or immune to acid rain, wherever it falls. It corrodes the metallic ground and infects the Energon, but it seems to have no effect on the plants. Much like how the polluted air doesn't get absorbed by them. Interesting.

Could the acid rain and polluted atmosphere be linked somehow? Could this be how metalo-plants naturally get rid of pollution and send it out again as clean air?

Could it be that the pollution in the air is released as acid rain and then absorbed by the ground and Energon, to then get absorbed and expelled by the metalo-plants? Could this be how the pollution problem can be solved?

But even if acid rain is the answer to getting rid of the air pollution, I still have yet to learn how acid rain occurs.

What has to happen in order for air pollution to condensate into acid rain? Is it temperature? A certain climate? Why does only certain regions of Cybertron pour acid rain?

These are, unfortunately, questions that are nearly impossible for me to answer, as I am neither a flight frame nor do I have access to a ship that I can use to study the pollution and acid rain myself. I will have to rely on textbooks, which, unfortunately, are not very accurate.

The textbooks I have in my lab on biology, chemistry and physics are accurate ones that I have either written myself or confirmed them to be true, having been written by reliable sources. Geography, however, is not one of the textbooks I have in here. And even if I did have one, I doubt it would be accurate.

So many scientists have little care for our planet or what any of the science actually means. When it comes to natural science, biology, information is very scarce and inaccurate. Almost any other kind of science is fairly accurate and documented, but for some reason, we Cybertronians simply do not care about the nature of our planet. We only care about our cities, industry and conquest, and anything that gets in our way has to be eliminated, and everything else is to be ignored.

I am ashamed to be part of this cold, sparkless race. But I will not let that get to me. I am doing what no other Cybertronians have ever done, which is _care_ about my planet.

Others might say I am crazy, delusional and need to get therapy. But I do not think there is anything wrong with taking the state of the world's metalo-plants and mechanimals seriously. On the other hand, I think there's something _very_ wrong with everyone else, since they _don't_ care about Cybertron.

Hopefully, the future generations of Cybertron will care more for our world than the current population does.

If not, then what hope is there for Cybertron?

* * *

Entry #36

Solar cycle 1051, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 12, stellar cycle 3.

The contaminated trees have begun to bloom, though their flowers are having dark patches, just like the buds they used to be. For curiosity's sake, I decided to use another contaminated cube on one of the trees to see if it will have any effect on the fruits that are to come, and thus the seeds. Suppose I will have to wait three months to find out.

I have now examined the new retrorats, and as I hoped, a bunch of them seem to be normal, despite their low levels of toxins. Some of them continue to be blind, deaf or both, however. But since it seems at least some of them are healthy, though contaminated, there might be hope.

I will breed a healthy and a handicapped retrorat next month, when they are fully mature, so I can see if their offspring will be healthy or handicapped as well.

I also did some more research on acid rain. It seems that the reason why acid rain occurs more often in certain regions of Cybertron is because there needs to be a certain temperature for the clouds of pollution to condensate, much like with Energon clouds. The climate seems to be important too, and the Acid Wastes has a cool and damp climate throughout most of the year, so that might explain why it rains so often there, creating its unique environment.

We're reaching the end of the year, which means I will have another two or so years left to live in. Two years left to continue my research. Not long enough.

I still have plenty of Energon, but I use most of it for my experiments, and it will not last forever.

I could take some of the empty cubes to the osmium forest nearby to fill them up with the Energon from the river. It seems clean enough to be used for fuel and experiments.

But with these expeditions come certain risks as well. Risks such as being ambushed by bandits or getting attacked by wild mechanimals like turbofoxes or gridwolves. Or even Scraplets or Insecticons.

Because the metalo-plant known as the Scraplet-Trapper has been declining in the recent centuries, the population of Scraplets and Insecticons have increased, especially the former.

As far as I know, there may be one single jungle left on Cybertron where the Scraplet-Trapper exists. And who's to say how long that jungle will continue to exist, with the war going on and everything?

If only I could reach this jungle, so I could at least acquire a CNA sample of a Scraplet-Trapper, then its species might be able to get saved.

Scraplet-Trappers do not need to get pollinated to reproduce, unlike most other metalo-plants. They act like metal-fungi, releasing spores to land in a suitable spot to grow into a new plant. As a biologist, I must say Scraplet-Trappers are my favorite metalo-plants. They are like a hybrid of metalo-plant and metal-fungi. Very fascinating beings. It's such a shame they are near extinct.

Unfortunately, the jungle I spoke of is located too far away for me to reach and return safely. I could, of course, perhaps contact the Autobots and request an escort to the jungle and back again, but I doubt they will grant my wish.

Plus, if they find this place, they might try to destroy my research or worse yet, claim it for themselves and misuse it.

Good thing this place is locked in a very complex way, since I am a very anxious bot with trust-issues.

I once asked the Autobot leader for help, in exactly this sort of situation, but he turned me down, rudely, even. Zeta Prime is just like everyone else. He is a blind fool, he understands nothing of what is going on in the world, outside his cozy little castle in Iacon.

After getting rejected, I never tried asking the Autobots for help again. It's no use. And there's no way I could ask the Decepticons for help. They might give me help, but only in order to seize my work for themselves and misuse it. That's the kind of mech Megatron is, and that's the kind of scientist Shockwave is. I cannot trust the Decepticons with this. I mean, it's in their name! Deception! With an extra 'c'!

Anyway, because of this complex locking system I installed, as well as the entire lab being made of durabyllium, including the key itself, no one will get in here without the key, and I have it on me, at all times.

Though that may have to change soon. At some point. Not right now, but some time in the future.

When my time comes.

* * *

Entry #37

Solar cycle 1081, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 4.

Three years have now passed since the destruction of Vos, and since I began my isolation in the lab. My Energon stash is starting to look small, though there are still plenty of cubes left for another one or two years.

The contaminated trees have now grown small fruits, again growing much slower than their ancestors, and they too have dark patches like the flowers did. Furthermore, the fruits on the tree sitting in contaminated Energon seem to be mostly black, with only a few light patches of the fruits' natural color. The tree itself is growing even wider dark patches, along with its leaves, like it's once again absorbing the pollution from the Energon.

If the fruits these contaminated trees are anything to go for, it is likely these blackish fruits will stay this color regardless of the Energon's refining process by the tree. I wonder just how potent the toxins must be in these fruits for them to be this black. I wonder how the seeds may have been affected.

On another note, the new retrorats have now fully matured, and I have bred a pair of handicapped rats with a pair of healthy ones. Hopefully I will get promising results in two months.

I just realized that I have not had an oil bath or shower for three years. My lab doesn't have either installed, and with the world at war and Vos destroyed, and I being a Grounder and alone, I have not really had the chance to clean myself. Now that I've realized this, I am beginning to notice several white spots and lines on my armor. At least there doesn't seem to be any oxidation, probably thanks to my somewhat new steady diet of platinum. Precious metals are good against oxidation such as rust.

Since oil is a non-metallic substance, consisting entirely of carbon, hydrogen and sometimes oxygen, it is scarce on our planet. In fact, natural oil is only found at oil springs around volcanoes, and even these are not common due to the way we Cybertronians have adapted the planet to our benefit and comfort. It isn't really certain why oil is only found around volcanoes. There's not even oil inside the volcanoes themselves, they just have regular molten iron, more commonly known as lava.

There have been claims of finding oil pits around smelting pools, which are more common than volcanoes and less prone to eruption, but I have not seen solid evidence to proof these claims.

Despite the scarcity of oil locations on Cybertron, there seems to be enough that the high caste society can enjoy a good oil bath when they need or want to. Oil is important for the Cybertronian body, to lubricate our joints and to keep our optics moist, clean and functional. Fortunately oil in our bodies doesn't disappear as quickly as Energon does, which means we don't have to bathe or shower as often as we need to consume Energon.

The Energon deposits on Cybertron is produced by Cybertron itself. It makes sense, since Cybertron itself is a living organism, and we Cybertronians are more similar to millions of tiny micro-organisms such as bacteria in comparison. We feed off the planet's own supply of Energon and oil while it continues to live on. It's fascinating to think about.

Still, even if we won't run out of Energon, I wonder if the same thing goes for oil? Or any other non-metallic element that exists on this metal world, for that matter?

I have heard certain bots - mostly the religious - talk about the possibility that Cybertron's very core may be Primus himself. I am not religious myself, but I do find the theory interesting. Since Cybertron is clearly alive, it wouldn't surprise me if it is our very creator that provides us with the Energon and substances we need.

But even if our creator god really does reside in our planet or not, it is still evident that our planet is alive and can be affected by changes on it.

And... there is also a possibility, a very likely possibility even... that our planet could die.

If Cybertron dies... what will happen to the Energon and oil? Will it all disappear? Will it stay?

...I think I'll end this log now before I start to get nightmares.

* * *

Entry #38

Solar cycle 1111, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 4.

The fruits on the contaminated trees have grown bigger, though are smaller than the fruits of previous trees at this point. I am not sure if they will be fully grown by next month or if they will even grow much bigger than this. Regardless, I will harvest the fruits from the trees next month so I can examine them.

The fruits on the tree in contaminated Energon have become solid black now, with not a single light spot on either of them. It's even smaller than the spotted fruits on the other trees. The Energon still seems to be largely polluted, as if the tree isn't absorbing all the toxins properly...

The fruits on the other contaminated trees in clean Energon continue to have dark spots, but seemingly not as potent as the black fruits on the one tree. Despite growing in clean Energon, it seems the fruits are polluted from the beginning, simply because the trees they hang in are polluted since being seeds.

It will be interesting to see how much pollution will be let into the air within the next month from the one tree. And even more so what the potent toxins have done to the seeds of its fruits.

I will continue to monitor their progress.

* * *

Entry #39

Solar cycle 1141, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 4.

I have now harvested the fruits from the new trees, despite the fact that they are still quite small. I opened a few of them up, and they all seem to have seeds inside, though not many, especially in the black fruits. They are not dangerous to the touch, but I have no doubt a bite from either of them will cause illness and eventual deactivation.

I examined the fruits through my microscope, and the solid black fruits do indeed seem to have very potent toxicity than the spotted fruits. Now that I have looked closer at them, there seems to be traces of carbon in the dark areas. The carbon levels in the black fruits are especially high.

Of all the non-metallic elements on Cybertron, carbon seems to be the most common of them, especially considering it's what oil is mostly made up of, as well as being found in several compounds such as carbon monoxide from black smoke, or alloys such as steel...

I wonder if the carbon is the main source of the pollution in the air, not to mention these metalo-plants? It would make sense why the plants gain dark or black patches in the areas of concentrated carbon, since the element is black in color...

I will have to research this further.

In the meantime, the retrorats I bred two months ago have now birthed new podlings. In both pairs, with a healthy carrier and a handicapped carrier, the podlings seem to have the same result. Both rats have birthed seven podlings, but it is too soon to tell if any of them are handicapped. I will find out in a week or two.

The contaminated tree in polluted Energon has also expelled some of the toxins it absorbed, but it still retains its dark patches. I gathered the pollution in my vacuum device, and it seems to be more potent than last generation, which is concerning.

Perhaps the pollution in the seeds have made the plants weaker and less effective at absorbing and expelling the new contamination?

I wonder if the pollution can be bred out of them, like it seemingly can with the mechanimals?

I will collect the seeds from the spotted fruits and the black fruits and see how the pollution has affected the next generation.

I will cross my fingers for the next year.

* * *

Entry #40

Solar cycle 1171, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 4.

Because of dwindling Energon supplies, I have decided to sow seeds in only four containment fields. Two of the toxic seeds from one of the black fruits, and two seeds from one of the spotted fruits. I have used a contaminated cube on a potent seed and one on a less potent seed. The other two seeds are getting pure Energon.

The seeds have sprouted by now, and I am seeing some clear differences here.

Firstly, one sprout in contaminated Energon has dark spots like its ancestor.

Secondly, the other spotted sprout, which grows in pure Energon, seems to have slightly lighter patches, though they are still dark, but not pitch-black like on the other sprout. I'd say dark gray, if anything.

Thirdly, both sprouts of the black fruit are completely black, both the one in pure Energon and the one in contaminated Energon. I am curious to see if anything will change as they grow.

On another note, the retrorat podlings have grown old enough that I can examine them. From what I can tell, out of the fourteen podlings, only two of them seem to be handicapped, and neither are siblings. One podling is blind, the other is deaf. The other twelve rats seem to be healthy.

This is promising for the mechanimals, in any case. It would seem that contaminated mechanimals can become healthy by consuming pure Energon and metalo-fruits for an extended period of time. And even if they remain contaminated, it seems the pollution can be bred out of them over a few generations, as long as they mate with a healthy partner.

And even if they die without passing on their genes, the pollution will gather on the ground and be absorbed by nearby metalo-plants. The metalo-plants seemingly use some of the pollution's components to build their structures, and the rest is released as cleaner air.

Now that I know the mechanimals and Cybertronians can survive and be cured of this pollution, I can return to focus entirely on the development of the metalo-plants.

This means I will have to dispose of the majority of my robo-rodent subjects and lilleths, but it is necessary to make the Energon last longer. I will release the ones that are healthy and euthanize the polluted ones. They've been suffering for too long now, and they've served their purpose. They deserve to be released from the pain they are experiencing.

Now though, I must see if anything can be done about the pollution in the trees I have. My next project will be to breed those toxic dark patches out of the spotted trees. As well as see what will happen to the offspring of the black plants with potent toxins.

Until next time.

* * *

Entry #41

Solar cycle 1201, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 5, stellar cycle 4.

The saplings have grown bigger, the one with light spots faster so than the one with dark spots and especially the two black saplings.

The spotted sapling in contaminated Energon has started developing more dark patches, as it is absorbing the pollution in the Energon. The two black saplings seem to be growing at approximately the same rate, both in pure and in contaminated Energon. So far, there are no signs the one in contaminated Energon is absorbing the toxins.

As I said in the last entry, I have disposed of my mechanimal subjects. A surprisingly large number of them were healthy and thus fit for surviving in the wild. I euthanized the blind and deaf subjects first, as they would be unable to survive in the wild, and would probably contaminate predators eating them anyway. I examined each other specimen to check their pollution levels before deciding their fate.

I have deduced that as long as the toxin levels are below twenty percent, the specimens are not in danger of getting affected by the pollution, though the healthiest ones seem to have toxin levels at ten percent or lower. Above twenty percent, I begin to see changes in the genetic codes and in the health of the specimen.

I have tried to come up with theoretical numbers for the danger levels of the toxins, based on my findings, research and experiments.

At twenty percent or more, an individual would have its genetic coding changed and it would more easily get sick.

At thirty percent, an individual would get even more easily sick and slightly weakened.

At forty percent, an individual would get highly weakened and very easily sick.

At fifty percent, the toxins would start to get lethal, and an individual would die within a millennium.

At sixty percent, an individual would die within a century.

At seventy percent, an individual would die within a decade.

At seventy-five percent, an individual would die within five years.

At eighty percent, an individual would die within a year.

At eighty-five percent, an individual would die within a month.

At ninety-percent, an individual would die within a week.

At ninety-five percent, an individual would die within a day.

At ninety-six percent, an individual would die within half a day.

At ninety-seven percent, an individual would die within an hour.

At ninety-eight percent, an individual would die within half an hour.

At ninety-nine percent, an individual would die within minutes.

And finally, at one hundred percent, an individual would die within seconds.

Basically, from ninety-five percent and upwards, there's nothing that can save you from the toxins. Even at seventy-five percent, you can only slow down the breakdown of your body, but you can't be cured.

Remember when I said in an earlier entry that I tested my own Energon?

When I first tested it, I was on a dangerously high seventy percent. Now, in the last month, my latest test has shown my levels to be a little over sixty percent. I am still in the danger zone, and I am even unaware how long I have had this level of contamination, so I am unsure if I have managed to slow down the deterioration process or not.

If lack of Energon isn't going to kill me, the pollution will, eventually.

It's just a matter of time.

Hopefully I will have found a solution to our problems before then.

* * *

Entry #42

Solar cycle 1231, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 6, stellar cycle 4.

I forgot to mention in the last entry that, while I euthanized all the handicapped mechanimals and released the healthy ones, I did keep a few contaminated ones that aren't handicapped. I could still use them to test the potency of this generation's platinum-papaya trees' fruits, when the time comes.

I kept seven critters, a lilleth, a retrorat, a guinea pigatron, a helio-hamster, a robotoppossum, a dexi-squirrel and a petro-rabbit. They have all shown to react similarly to the same doses of poison and at approximately the same rate.

Regarding the trees, the saplings have grown slightly larger, and the one in contaminated Energon seems to have absorbed all the pollution in its field. No change in either of the black saplings' fields nor to their structure. The contaminated Energon remained polluted. I will give it another month before drawing conclusions.

On another note, I have speculated what would happen if, hypothetically, the metalo-plants were to disappear from Cybertron altogether. Whether from pollution such as this one, or through abuse from the Cybertronian population.

Basically, without the metalo-plants, Cybertron's natural Energon deposits would become polluted just like the kind found in and around cities. We would have to rely on our technological refineries to cleanse the Energon. While this is the way we normally do it, without the metalo-plants to absorb the toxins, the waste is simply dumped into the sewers or released into the air and will grow more and more potent.

In the end, I believe the air will be so toxic, not even we Cybertronians would be able to live here anymore.

Without the metalo-plants, not only will the atmosphere become toxic, the herbivorous mechanimals such as petro-rabbits and dexi-squirrels will have nothing to feed on. Even the Energon they live off on will be so toxic they will perish. And without the smaller mechanimals, there is nothing for the larger predators to eat, and they will starve to death as well.

In the end, Cybertron will be left a toxic wasteland. Only we Cybertronians would be left, and maybe not even then.

As such, it is very important that we conserve the metalo-plants of Cybertron, even if only their seeds, roots, leaves or other CNA samples.

Pit, even conserving samples of mechanimals may prove important. Although most mechanimals emerge from the Well of All Sparks like we Cybertronians, there has not been much new life coming out of the AllSpark lately. The last time something emerged from the Well was about a century ago or so, from what I recall. Maybe more, maybe less. I don't listen very often to the radio or read news on the Grid.

Regardless, it seems as if the AllSpark is creating less and less life in the recent millennia. Perhaps it is aware of the war and on some higher plane refuses to send more of Primus' Sparklings to the world to be slaughtered in the next moment? That's what makes sense to me, anyway.

Even with the tens of thousands of lives already lost in this war, the AllSpark refuses to provide the Autobots and Decepticons with more troops. If anything, any new life emerging from the Well may be simple mechanimals, incapable of participating in the war.

If I was religious, I would say Primus is punishing the warmongers for what they're doing to Cybertron and its wildlife. As a biologist, that is exactly what I think.

But even if the mechanimals will eventually return via the Well, I am uncertain about the metalo-plants. There are no real records or documents on the origin of the metalo-plants, whether they came from the Well as well, or if they appeared by different means.

While mechanimals do have Sparks, metalo-plants don't seem to have them. In fact, they don't even seem to contain organs of any sort, unless you count leaves and roots as organs, I suppose.

Interestingly, there have been reports of trees being sawed over, and years later, new trees began growing from the stumps. However, if the roots are damaged or removed, the plant does not grow back. If anything, it would seem the metalo-plants' debatable organs would reside within the roots.

I have tried cutting open such roots and found nothing. Not even a tiny solid Spark. Nothing.

How are metalo-plants alive? How do they survive without anything but Energon and metal soil? How are they alive without any organs and even exclusively reproducing on their own? Where did the original metalo-plants come from?

Despite how much I have learned about metalo-plants within the last three and a half years, there is still so much mystery surrounding them. So much more to learn and find out.

Too much for the short life I have left.

While the mechanimals will eventually return via the Well, the metalo-plants will likely not.

So to anyone who might be listening to this log at some point in the future... when I'm gone and dead... you must collect as many seeds, leaves, roots and CNA samples from as many different species of metalo-plants, trees and smaller plants, as possible.

This is a task I am unfortunately incapable of.

All I can do is research and provide you with the information necessary to carry on this mission.

A mission to save the future of Cybertron.

* * *

Entry #43

Solar cycle 1261, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 7, stellar cycle 4.

The saplings have grown a bit bigger, they are starting to look like actual trees despite their small sizes. The spotted sapling that was given contaminated Energon has now lost the spots it gained from absorbing the pollution, which means the pollution is once again in the air. I will collect it later.

As I suspected, the two black saplings are still growing at the same rate, and the Energon in the contaminated field is as contaminated as it started out.

It would seem that when the toxicity levels in a metalo-plant is potent enough, the plant becomes unable to absorb and expel any contamination in its environment. This is worrisome, and worse yet, it seems there is nothing to be done to cure the plant.

Not even the tree in the pure Energon is showing any improvements. It is still black and growing as slowly as its fellow.

At least the spotted trees are showing signs of improvement. The spotted tree in the pure Energon is growing steadily, and the other spotted tree is also starting to grow slightly faster, despite having grown in contaminated Energon.

I decided to take a sample of the contaminated Energon for later examination and comparison. I will compare it to the air pollution later on, as well as one of the toxic fruits when they appear to see if there are any similarities. I will also have to use one of my mechanimals for testing the fruits to see what it is that kills them.

Is it the carbon? Or are there other components? I believe there was also some sulphur, maybe phosphorus? I don't really remember.

Regardless, it will be interesting to see how the potent toxicity will affect the black trees' fruits, as well as how the spotted trees' offspring will fare when it has not been affected by pollution during reproduction.

Hopefully all the trees will bud in the next month.

* * *

Entry #44

Solar cycle 1291, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 8, stellar cycle 4.

All the trees have started budding, even the toxic black trees. All four trees are still small, especially the black ones, but that doesn't seem to stop them from maturing around the same rate as their ancestors.

I wish I had more Energon to keep more subjects, not just metalo-plants, but also mechanimals. And, of course, myself.

But to keep myself alive long enough to also perform as much research as I can for the future, I have to restrict myself.

If only I had been forged a Flier. A Seeker, even. Had I been a Seeker, everything would be so much easier, perhaps even effortless.

Yes, I know, Seekers are not a race, it's not something you're _born_ as, it's something you _earn_. I have heard this speech from plenty of Seekers in my life, even Sky Commander Starscream at some point, I believe.

But still, Seekers are the best Fliers on Cybertron. They're strong, fast, smart, skilled and they can fly. In my opinion, they are the perfect bots. Any bot that can fly is already closer to perfection than any perfect Grounder.

Fliers can get anywhere they want without restrictions. Fliers can easily get out of the city, into the forest for an expedition and get back again without problems. Grounders like I can't. There's too much at risk.

If I was to go out again, it would be too dangerous to go alone, especially as I don't really have any weapons on me. Unless you call a laser pointer and a fire extinguisher weapons, that is. Which I don't.

Seekers have such great advantages. They can fly, so they can get anywhere. They are also strong and skilled, as they are Air Warriors and trained for combat, both in the air and on the ground, up close or ranged.

Furthermore, Seekers are smart, I have not met or heard about a single Seeker that wasn't smart in some way, whether in science, strategy or combat. In fact, the Seekers are actually a hybrid class, they are both warriors _and_ scientists!

Becoming a Seeker is incredibly difficult, as you not only have to prove yourself as a superior Flier with complete control over your flight mode, you also need to be physically strong and fast, and you need to be smart to know what to do in any kind of situation, whether science or combat. Passing the Seeker test is one of the most difficult tests on Cybertron. Only the best bots become Seekers.

In case you haven't noticed, I quite admire the Seekers. After all, almost all Seekers come from Vos, or at least live in Vos, as this is where the Cybertronian Air Command resides. Well, used to reside, anyway. Before Vos was destroyed.

We Vosians were proud of our Seeker military. We had the finest Air Warriors and Fliers on Cybertron. We are often forgotten by other cities and city-states, but thanks to our Seekers, especially that ambitious and attention-seeking Starscream, the rest of Cybertron does not forget us, and they even respect us.

Well, maybe except for Tarn. Who knows, I don't know anyone from Tarn.

When I was younger, I wanted to become a Seeker. Imagine my disappointment when I learned only Fliers are allowed as Seekers. For obvious reasons. And I got quite ridiculed for trying to get in or even _wishing_ to become a Seeker.

Still, I never lost my admiration for the Seekers, despite whatever trouble they - mostly Starscream - got into with other bots or cities. Seekers are powerful, mighty warriors of the sky, they fly faster than any other Fliers, they have amazing agility and skills to dodge their opponents' attacks, and all Seekers have some level of scientific knowledge. Even those regarded as stupid are still smarter than most bots. So you can imagine the really smart ones are about or above the level of Shockwave.

Many Fliers strive to become Seekers. Even I, a Grounder, wished to be a Seeker.

Now though... they're all gone. Well, from Vos, anyway.

Rumors have it the Seekers are still alive, on some orbital space station. Wait, didn't I mention this in another entry? Maybe I did, my memory isn't what it used to be.

Why do I wish to become a Seeker, a Flier no less?

Well, I already told you the reasons why. Fliers can go anywhere, thus I would easily be able to go out and retrieve as much Energon as I needed to survive. I would probably be able to last much longer, even with my current toxicity levels.

But it would be even better if I was a Seeker. If I was a Seeker, I could do anything, even on my own. Nothing would stop me.

Like I said, Seekers are powerful. Perhaps the most powerful of Fliers on Cybertron. Despite being lighter in weight and smaller in size than many heavy builds, such as tank-formers, they are about as powerful as the latter. Basically, they have the weight of a light build and physical strength of a heavy build. Combined, they are fast and furious. They are the only bots who can potentially survive on their own, the best and most powerful of them might even be able to take down a small army on their own.

There are no bots with as much potential in power and skill as Seekers. They are the best.

In my opinion, of course. But I'm right. And you can't say I'm wrong.

Because you can't talk back at me on this recording.

Because when you hear this, I will be dead.

I will have the last word.

* * *

Entry #45

Solar cycle 1321, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 9, stellar cycle 4.

The four trees have started to bloom, the black ones included. While the spotted trees have dark spots on their flowers, the black trees have black flowers. It is quite intriguing to observe these shiny black metalo-plants. Beautiful, yet deadly.

Now I have to pollinate the flowers, including the toxic black ones. Soon they will grow into fruits... maybe.

The potency of the toxins in the black trees makes me uncertain if the trees are fertile or not. The polluted Energon in the one containment field remains polluted without change. It seems these trees truly have become incapable of refining Energon now.

If the trees are still fertile, will their offspring be unable to refine Energon as well?

Could I be producing a new type of trees that could replace the healthy trees and thus render Cybertron's nature unable to cleanse natural Energon deposits?

If that is the case, we could all be in serious trouble.

I suppose I will learn in two or three months.

* * *

Entry #46

Solar cycle 1351, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 10, stellar cycle 4.

The flowers have now been replaced by small fruits, like usual. The black trees have also grown fruits, black and shiny like the rest of the trees.

So far, the black trees seem to be fertile, which doesn't bode well.

In two months' time, I will be able to harvest them and see the state of the seeds and to see just how potent the toxins are. After all, I still have seven mechanimals left in my lab.

As for the spotted trees, their fruits have dark spots as well, though they seem to be slightly lighter on one tree than the other. The tree that was fed with clean Energon has lighter spotted fruits than the one that purified a cube of contaminated Energon. Interesting.

Not much else to report.

I will continue to observe and take notes.

* * *

Entry #47

Solar cycle 1381, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 11, stellar cycle 4.

The fruits have grown bigger, albeit still small compared to the other trees. Especially the black fruits are smaller than the spotted fruits, though they are growing steadily. I suspect while the fruits may not be ripe at the same time as the others, I should still be able to examine the seeds inside.

Next month, I will conduct tests on the black fruits and test the toxicity on one of my remaining mechanimal subjects.

With the year soon coming to an end, I will have to find out what my next step is, depending on the result I get in a month.

Until then, I shall wait patiently and observe.

* * *

Entry #48

Solar cycle 1411, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 12, stellar cycle 4.

We are ending the year, and with it, I have news about my latest study.

I have harvested the fruits of the four trees, where two of them are spotted and two of them are black and toxic. I examined the spotted fruits first and kept the seeds to sow them later.

Afterwards I examined the black fruits to check the state of the seeds.

But as I opened them up, I was surprised to find... nothing. No seeds. Nowhere.

The fruits are seedless. The trees yielded fruits, but they bear no seeds.

The toxic trees _are_ infertile after all. The toxicity must be so potent it completely destroyed the trees' ability to reproduce.

This, at least, means that the deadly trees cannot spread to dominate the healthy metalo-plants and render the planet unable to refine Energon naturally.

That alone is a reflief to know. This means the metalo-plants are not doomed, no matter how badly they get polluted.

Cybertron has ensured that extreme contamination cannot be passed on and spread among the beings' kin. It is a genius strategy from nature's side, one that ensures survival and prevents extinction. Somewhat, at least.

The spotted trees are still fertile and bear fruits with seeds inside. I tested two of the spotted fruits on my remaining guinea pigatron and retrorat. I fed the guinea pigatron with a fruit with black spots. It lived for three days before falling ill and dying a day later.

The retrorat was fed a fruit with slightly lighter spots, from the tree that fed on clean Energon. The rat lived for four days before becoming sick and dying two days later.

I also tested one of the black fruits on my remaining helio-hamster. It died within minutes of consumption. I now have only four mechanimals left in the lab.

The fact that the retrorat lived two days longer than the guinea pigatron after consuming a seemingly less toxic fruit is promising.

Perhaps by feeding new trees exclusively clean Energon, its offspring will eventually become healthy metalo-plants again with fruits that don't kill their consumers?

It seems now I have gained a clearer understanding of how metalo-plants work in the refining of Energon, as well as what effect pollution has on the environment.

The black trees have toxicity levels of 100% potency, making them deadly. If you eat from these trees, you die almost instantly, and there is seemingly nothing that will save you.

Thankfully, these trees are infertile, so their lineage has already ended. I will destroy the trees as soon as I examine what the toxins are made of, now that I have it in its purest, deadly form.

As for the spotted trees, I have decided to sow the seeds of the lighter spotted tree and feed it with only clean Energon now.

We are entering the fifth year of my isolation, which means I don't have much time left.

I will most likely not be able to complete my research.

The best thing I can do now is clean the air in here as much as I can, dispose of the pollution in the Energon and trees I have as well as possible, before I die.

Because even when I die, my research cannot be abandoned. It cannot be ignored. It has to be continued.

Even if I am not the one continuing it.

So if someone else is to take over for me when my time comes, I better have the place be as little hazardous as possible.

No more feeding the trees contaminated Energon. No more polluting the clean Energon I have.

I have to make this work.

* * *

Entry #49

Solar cycle 1441, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 5.

Four years have now passed since Vos was destroyed and I secluded myself inside this lab. There isn't much Energon left in my storage. If I am to continue my experiments, I may not even have enough left for a whole year. I will have to use these cubes _extremely_ wisely now.

For that reason, I have chosen to only care for two trees now, both of them which I feed with clean Energon. As for the rest of my contaminated Energon, the contaminated trees and fruits, I have fed all those to the older trees still alive and healthy in the lab. First, of course, I made sure to harvest all the fruits on them so they don't create more polluted fruits.

It takes about three months for each tree to fully absorb and expel the pollution in their containment fields, whether it be the Energon or the soil.

But by feeding _all_ the trees, minus the two that have recently sprouted with slightly lighter dark spots, the refining and cleansing process should go faster. In theory, anyway.

I did say before that I was not going to contaminate any more cubes or pollute any more air, but it is also hazardous to keep the pollution in solid form, as someone could accidentally eat something and die. Maybe. I don't know, I just like to take precautions.

Even if those precautions mean the air is going to be _very_ polluted in here now.

Anyway, to talk about something else, I decided to examine the chemical make-up of the black trees and their fruits, to see what the pollution is made up of.

It seems the pollution has almost entirely changed the palladium of the plants' natural composition, and the pollution seems to be largely made of carbon. There is also a smaller percentage of sulphur and phosphorus, but carbon is the main component here. Where does all this carbon come from?

From what I recall, the air on Cybertron contains various non-metals, carbon included, usually in the form of carbon dioxide, but usually they don't do any harm to the environment.

However, when certain changes in the air and environment take place, such as a fire, the carbon dioxide involved sometimes gets turned into a substance known as carbon monoxide, very toxic and dangerous. Perhaps the carbon monoxide waste from a fire could potentially pollute nearby Energon, whether a cloud or a stream, thus contaminating the entire deposit?

The industrial work in the cities have used a lot of fire and heat to smelt metals to create materials for construction. And accidents do happen. And fires do tend to grow out of control.

Could this be part of the reason why the Energon in the cities is so contaminated and dangerous to the touch? Is it all because of carbon monoxide?

There could be other elements in play too, of course. The small amount of sulphur and phosphorus could also do some damage, and there may be others as well that are too small for my current equipment to detect. But because of their small percentages, I strongly believe the toxicity is due to the carbon.

Other than the carbon dioxide in the air, Cybertron has oil springs with oil in it, which also contains carbon, and there are plenty of areas that has steel and other alloys with carbon as a component. Cybertron is full of carbon, we just don't notice it because it's never in its purest form.

The only place I know of that consisted of pure carbon is Crystal City. I have never been there, despite my advanced intellect and its elite science institute, but from what I have researched about it, it seems the crystals are made of diamond, one of the hardest crystalline objects in the galaxy and one of only two substances that are made of pure carbon. The other is graphite, which looks closer to coal and stains like it too. But even coal is not pure carbon - it may also consist of hydrogen, sulphur, phosphorus and other non-metals.

Diamonds are extremely rare on Cybertron, and Crystal City was the only of its kind. I watched on the Grid when it was destroyed. Despite the tragedy, it was... extraordinarily beautiful. Like with the deadly black fruits I grew. It was a beauty that shall never be repeated, for it was both a tragedy, and there is not enough diamond to make another Crystal City.

Crystal City will never be rebuilt in the glory it used to be. Its era has ended.

Like I said, carbon exists in many forms and in many components. It is everywhere, but we never notice it, which is probably why I didn't think of carbon as the source of the pollution until just recently.

Oh, and just to clarify, I am not saying that carbon is the villain here. It is not carbon that is dangerous here. After all, steel is a good and strong metal, which contains iron and carbon, and oil is essential to our health as a lubricate, and it is made of carbon and hydrogen.

The true villain here is carbon monoxide. Which is created through incomplete burning of something. It doesn't really matter what it is, because there is so much carbon dioxide around us that there will always be remnants of coal and carbon after a fire goes out. Even when we get burn marks on our armor, the blackness is a result of the carbon being exposed on our armor. We contain carbon, even if just a very tiny small amount. Even if we are not carbon-based life-forms, we still contain carbon. After all, there are carbon-based life-forms that contain metal. From what I have heard, anyway.

This could also explain why the trees absorb some of the carbon. They make the carbon part of their dexterity, but only a small amount, as they do not seem to absorb enough to contaminate themselves permanently, and the air expelled is still largely polluted, though slightly cleaner than before.

If it is carbon monoxide which causes the pollution, there is not much we can do to eliminate it or prevent it.

The only thing we can do is try to find cleaner ways to producing certain things and in the smelting of metal for construction materials. As well as make sure fires don't get out of hand and don't produce black smoke. It is the black smoke that contains carbon monoxide and which is toxic and dangerous, even to bots.

Hopefully the toxins I have fed my old trees with will get cleansed enough to make this lab safe to work and live in, by the time I have to go.

I hope I have enough time left...

* * *

Entry #50

Solar cycle 1471, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 5.

The saplings are growing larger, at a slightly faster pace than the previous ones, thanks to the exclusive diet of clean Energon. The spots seem to be lighter than their predecessors, even lighter than the fruits they came from. This is promising.

The other trees are getting dark spots from absorbing the toxins from their contaminated Energon and soil, which I made by grinding up the toxic black trees and fruits, as well as the other spotted trees and fruits, as I do not want these things to end up in the wrong hands, or to accidentally get eaten by some idiotic fool. I want just the clean, healthy trees in here.

The saplings are not getting any contaminated Energon or soil, so they do not get any darker spots than they already have, and they continue to grow steadily.

So far, so good. In two months, the toxins should be completely expelled into the air, which I can then collect.

The trees should not be making new fruits for another three months, so I am not worried that I will accidentally make new toxic fruits.

Once they start to bud, however, it will take another four months before I can give them more contaminated Energon or soil to cleanse. And even with the number of trees I currently have, it may not be enough time for me.

I really don't want to have to store toxic substances in my lab, but I don't want to have to plunge it into the environment either. Nature already has enough to deal with at the moment without my interference.

I just have to do what I can until I run out of Energon.

And then figure something out then.

* * *

Entry #51

Solar cycle 1501, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 5.

The saplings are growing bigger, faster without having to absorb and expel pollution. In two months, they should start budding.

As for the other trees, the Energon and soil in their containment fields seem to be almost completely toxin-free, which means they will soon start to expel the toxins into the air whilst making some of the carbon part of their structure.

I am a bit concerned how polluted the air is going to be in here afterwards, but I am already too contaminated myself to be saved. I'll just have to make do with the time I have left to make sure the pollution is as thinned out in here as possible.

I have a little over twenty Energon cubes left, which isn't much, especially with my experiments and everything. Especially considering the number of trees I have which I give polluted Energon once every few months now.

I really wish I could just go outside and get Energon. I could just go quickly over to the osmium forest and get some Energon from the river. I could live longer. I could do my experiments longer.

... but no. I can't.

There is a possibility I will be attacked while out there. And I alone can do nothing to defend myself.

Besides, I recently checked my pollution levels, and they don't look good.

And, for the first time since I started this project, I don't feel so good either. I don't know if this is my hypochondria, or if I'm actually starting to get sick.

I'm not even entirely sure if this pollution in the air is enough to actually kill a Cybertronian, even if hundreds or thousands of years pass, millions even. I don't know.

I can only estimate. But it doesn't look good. And this much pollution can't be good for _anyone_ , not even us bots that are made of metal and don't breathe gasses to survive, but only for ventilation.

All I know is... I don't feel well. I've been feeling a bit dizzy today. Not much, but still noticable compared to the majority of my life.

I don't know if this is due to the pollution in my body, but my hypochondria says so.

I will just have to stay strong and see how it goes throughout the next month.

* * *

Entry #52

Solar cycle 1531, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 5.

Waiting for my next Energon cube wasn't so easy this month. Even after my years of rationing now and having gotten used to one cube a month, I was near fatigue just a week ago. The dizziness that began last month also hasn't gotten away. I wouldn't say it's gotten worse, but it hasn't gone better either.

I feel awful, and I don't even know if what I say is entirely grammatical correctly. Honestly, I don't care anymore if what I say is correctly executed or not. I just need to get my message across.

Anyways, about the saplings. They've grown bigger, there seems to be something that looks like the beginning of buds, which is faster than they have gone thus far.

As for the adult trees, their spots have disappeared now, which means the pollution is in the air now. I will collect it later with my vacuum machine and check its potency. The toxins, I mean. In the air.

I sincerely hope this dizziness will disappear within the next month. I will eat some healthy fruits to lessen the need for more Energon, and hopefully to sate the dizziness I have in my head.

Only time will tell, I guess.

* * *

Entry #53

Solar cycle 1561, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 5, stellar cycle 5.

The small trees have budded now, and the buds are already starting to open into flowers. Clearly, feeding them with clean Energon is better than with contaminated Energon.

Speaking of clean Energon, I feel a little better today than last month, with the help of some palladium-papayas from the healthy trees, and a cube of clean Energon just now. The dizziness has decreased a bit, but it hasn't gone entirely away. Hopefully enough that my grammar is better now.

Oh well, the small worries of life.

I am excited to see how the light-spotted trees' flowers and fruits will look like, and what their offspring will look when growing in likewise clean Energon.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot, the older trees have also starting budding, so I can't give them contaminated Energon now. This should mean that the fruits will grow normally.

Also, I collected all the polluted air in here, and Primus, the pollution is worse than when I first discovered the polluted air in the lab.

I am uncertain whether to contaminate any Energon cubes and how many, or if I should keep the pollution in the vacuum machine, at least until the fruits can be harvested.

I suppose I will just wait and see until next month.

* * *

Entry #54

Solar cycle 1591, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 6, stellar cycle 5.

This is madness.

Last month, the dizziness I had in my head had almost disappeared thanks to a steady diet of healthy palladium-papaya fruits, but now I have run out, and two days ago I not only got dizziness in my head again, but now I also have a headache. Even after taking my monthly Energon cube, it hasn't gone away.

I feel awful, but hopefully it will decrease throughout the day. I will not have any more edible fruits in another three months. I hope it's not just the fruits that keep the pain at bay. Hopefully the pure Energon will as well, even if only for a little bit.

Anyways, for the report.

All the trees have bloomed, and I have pollinated all of them.

Did I ever explain how I pollinate them without beryllium-bees? I don't think I did.

Well, in that case, perhaps I should take some time to do just that.

So, in case you don't know, metalo-plants sprout flowers which send off a sweet scent that attracts insectoids such as beryllium-bees. The beryllium-bees land on the flowers and suck up sweet nectar produced by the plant itself, which they return to their hive with to turn into honey, which is very nutritious and sweet and is good against oxidation and tastes excellent in oil tea.

Anyways, while the beryllium-bees suck up that sweet nectar, their legs and bodies are caught in tiny magnetic metal atoms, which are the pollen of the flower they sit upon. When the bee takes off and lands on another flower of the same species, the metal pollen gets attracted by the other flower and sticks to it, thus fertilizing the flower. Afterwards, a fruit will start to grow, which has seeds inside, which can spawn a new plant.

This is how metalo-plants reproduce in the wild, using nectar to attract beryllium-bees, and as you now know, beryllium-bees are extremely important for this process.

I'm not sure how the plants produce nectar or what it's made of, since honey is a rarity, especially now with the dwindling nature. But it appears the plants only produce nectar to attract the beryllium-bees for pollination. Perhaps I should sample some of the nectar from my trees and take a closer look at it.

Regardless, from what I have researched, this is also the case of organic plants on alien worlds and how they reproduce.

But Cybertron is a metallic planet, and all life originally comes from the AllSpark. That is, all life that has a Spark.

But metalo-plants have no Sparks, at least none of which have been documented yet. So where did they originate from?

I have been thinking about the possibility of tiny, elusive Sparks existing in the roots of the plants, but I have been unable to conduct this research.

Hey, wait a second... I do have trees in my lab, and they have roots. Maybe I could cut one of them up and check the roots for Sparks?

As much as I hate to sacrifice one of my valuable trees, it seems I have to do it.

For science. For clarity. For the truth.

I will update you next month.

* * *

Entry #55

Solar cycle 1621, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 7, stellar cycle 5.

So I did what I said I'd do last month. I took one of my healthy trees and cut it over, then pulled up the roots and dissect them to check its inner anatomy.

Nothing. I found nothing. No Spark, not even anything resembling a solid extinguished Spark from having killed the plant. Nothing.

Or are the plants' Sparks so miniscule, so elusive that the moment I uproot them and cut them open, the Spark extinguishes, and the solid body becomes indistinguishable from the rest of the plant?

I can only theorize. I do not want to sacrifice another plant to confirm speculations on whether metalo-plants have Sparks or not.

In any case, aside from the failed test, the other trees have started to grow small fruits. The light-spotted new trees seem to be growing fruits almost without spots. I can barely make out very slightly darker spots on the fruits than on the rest of the trees. This looks promising.

I also tried sampling some of the nectar from both one of the light-spotted trees and one of the older healthy trees to examine its structure. What I found is very interesting.

In the nectar from the spotted tree, which only received pure Energon, I found only palladium, Energon and iron from the soil. The nectar is a bluish gray color and pretty liquid.

In the nectar of the healthy tree, however, I found so many elements. Not only did I find palladium, Energon and iron from the soil, I also found traces of carbon, sulphur, phosphorus, aluminium, lithium, magnesium, potassium... I found so many metals and even non-metals! Not just that, but rather than the blue-gray color and the liquid texture of the spotted tree, this nectar is a reddish orange, kind of like fire, and it's solid, like tiny sticky crystals.

The tree I took this nectar from is one of the trees that recently were given contaminated Energon, absorbed the pollution, purified the Energon and expelled the toxins.

I think I have finally discovered what the metalo-plants are using the pollution for!

Nectar! It's nectar!

Think about it. These trees have absorbed so much pollution with so many impurities from both Energon and soil, but their frames are still only made of palladium! And while the trees _do_ expel the pollution from themselves later, they seem to only release half or a fraction of what they originally absorbed. Where did the rest go?

Nothing just disappears. It simply turns into something else. And in this case, it's nectar.

The trees themselves don't need these extra metals and non-metals, since they only consist of a single metal, in this case palladium.

But beryllium-bees are attracted to this sweet nectar, filled with various metals and non-metals. While the plants don't seem to make a use of them, mechanimals and bots are made of various elements, even some non-metals like carbon. And since nectar and honey are full of anti-oxidants, it's good against oxidation and makes you healthier.

So the plants must produce nectar in order to attract beryllium-bees, because the bees need these elements, and in turn the plants get themselves pollinated so they can reproduce. It's a win-win situation for both sides!

This has to be it. This has to be the reason why metalo-plants absorb this pollution and keeps part of it while expelling the rest.

If only I had beryllium-bees to make honey so I could compare the results with the nectar and see if this theory of mine is actually true...

Since I am a scientist, I can unfortunately not claim this as being true, as it is, like I said before, just a theory. But it's a very solid theory, in my opinion.

If I had enough time, I would look further into this...

There is still one problem about this though.

Why do the metalo-plants only absorb part of the pollution and not the whole thing? Especially carbon seems to be released in great quantities, while sulphur and phosphorus seem to be released in smaller amounts.

Perhaps too much carbon is bad for the plants, just as it is for us bots and the mechanimals. Even if carbon partly makes up steel, a good and strong metal, too much carbon can be dangerous. Especially when it exists in the form of carbon monoxide, which is really toxic and the main part of this pollution problem in the first place. There's too much of it in our atmosphere, Energon and the ground for even the metalo-plants to completely purify.

So now I have apparently found a... _possible_... answer to why the plants absorb and expel pollution, what they use it for and how it works in the ecosystem of Cybertron.

But... despite this... this knowledge still doesn't give me an answer or even an idea of how to create a cure for those contaminated. I know the origin and function of this pollution, but I still don't know how to solve our crisis.

I still believe the metalo-plants are part of the solution. There are fewer metalo-plants on Cybertron that in the past, and the pollution levels on Cybertron have increased. Perhaps if more metalo-plants were planted and sowed, more of the pollution could be absorbed, converted and purified so our environment wouldn't be hazardous anymore. Maybe even enough for organic life to visit.

But as long as this war is going on, no one can focus on saving the nature of our world. We'll have to wait until the fighting ends. And that could take several thousands or millions of years more.

Until then... I will do what I can to document my findings, keep my research safe and hope it will be continued by others when my time comes.

Now, back to the state of the trees. I am not done with my report yet. I got a little side-tracked there.

So, like I said, the fruits are growing, and the ones on the spotted trees barely have any spots on them, which is a promising development. When the fruits are fully grown, I will sow a few chosen seeds and test a fruit on one of my mechanimals, to see if it survives, and if not, how long it takes before it dies fromt the toxicity.

As for myself, my headache has only grown worse since last month. I can barely keep my thoughts together, I can barely write down my notes properly, I can barely write the written form of my journal entries correctly.

The Energon cube I consumed today did nothing. I feel just as horrible as I did before consuming it.

I am certain another cube of Energon would decrease the pain... but I don't have much Energon left, and I still have to take care of the pollution in my vacuum machine.

Just so I don't get tempted, I am going to put the pollution in half the remaining cubes, one cube for each tree I have... more or less, anyway. I have about eighteen trees in total, I think.

There are so many of them now, and it hurts to think.

I really hope this pain will disappear once I have access to healthy fruits again.

* * *

Entry #56

Solar cycle 1651, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 8, stellar cycle 5.

You have no idea how hard it was to pronounce all that correctly. My head hurts so badly, and my vision is starting to get blurry from the pain.

Every day the pain seems to get worse, and the monthly cube of Energon does literally nothing to sate the pain.

My only hope for relief now is the fruits that will ripe in the next month. The fruits are bigger but not ripe yet, so I can't eat them yet.

I am still interested to see how the light-spotted fruits on the two young trees are though, but my headache severely cuts my motivation to continue.

But... I am a strong Vosian. I will push through.

Just one more month. I can do this.

You just wait and see.

* * *

Entry #57

Solar cycle 1681, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 9, stellar cycle 5.

I feel a little better today, now that the fruits are ripe and I have harvested them, and I immediately ate a bunch of them along with my monthly cube, until the pain disappeared. I have many fruits now to eat, but if I have to eat a bunch every day to keep the pain away, I don't know how much longer I will last.

Can you die from pain alone? The little research I've done on it suggests yes, you can. So even if the cause of this pain doesn't kill me, the pain itself might bring my systems to an overload and I'll die anyway.

I just noticed today that we're nearing the end of my fifth year in isolation and solitude. Could that have anything to do with my recent headaches? Could this new constant pain and dizziness be a sign?

Ugh, the pain has gone away for now, but now I am worrying for when it will return and what it means! I'm having a really bad time here!

Let's focus on something else. The report.

Right, the report. So like I said earlier, the fruits on the trees have matured and I have harvested them all. I ate the fruits from the healthy trees and sampled some seeds from the spotted trees. I also fed my dexi-squirrel with one of the spotted fruits. Only time will tell if the robo-rodent will survive through the next month.

If not, I will only have three mechanimals left, a lilleth, a petro-rabbit and a robotoppossom. If I have enough time left, I may be able to feed one of them with a fruit of the next generation to see if they will survive completely.

But... if I don't have enough time... what will become of the remaining mechanimal subjects I have?

What will become of my trees and smaller metalo-plants?

What will become of the life I have grown in this lab?

If I die... I will have to either release or kill the mechanimals before I go. But the plants... there's nothing I can do about the plants.

I am uncertain how long metalo-plants can survive without Energon, as I am also uncertain if anyone will ever find this place after I die.

One thing I do know is that metalo-plants do not require much Energon to survive or grow. After all, for each new tree I have sowed and grown, I have only spent one Energon cube, from sprouting to growing mature harvestable fruits!

The Energon is most concentrated in the fruits, which makes sense as the seeds inside would need plenty of Energon and metallic nutrients to grow up into trees. Some seeds even grow inside living bots or mechanimals, sprouting with the nutrients and Energon found inside the bodies of these. In these cases, the host will usually die, though some individuals may be able to purge their tanks in time for the seeds to sprout without being trapped in the host's systems. This, of course, is a win-win situation for both the plant and the mechanimal. Certain species of mechanimals have other ways to... dispose of the sprouts, though these cases are pretty rare and take after many organic alien species.

I suppose I will just have to leave my metalo-plants behind and hope for the best. As long as the seeds of their fruits survive, everything will be fine. Seeds can still sprout even if they are dry and centuries or milennia old and have not been supplied with Energon in all that time. I have done such research earlier in my life.

Anyway, on another note, I have taken the seeds of the spotted trees and sowed a few chosen seeds into two new containment fields. The fruits themselves seem to have very little contamination in them, which will hopefully be even less in this next generation there is to come with these new seeds.

Also, now that the older trees have been harvested of their healthy fruits, I have finally added one contaminated Energon cube to each tree. There do seem to be eighteen healthy trees in total.

Palladium-papaya trees grow new fruits pretty quickly compared to other species of metalo-trees, so these should start to bud in four months already. Which means this could be the last time I use contaminated Energon on my trees.

Hopefully the contamination will be gone or at least almost gone by the next three months.

Otherwise, I will have to come up with a plan for how to dispose of it.

But no plan I can think up has a happy ending.

I suppose I will have to wait and see.

* * *

Entry #58

Solar cycle 1711, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 10, stellar cycle 5.

The new seeds have sprouted now, and so far, they seem to be spotless. This is very promising. I hope this means what I think it means.

The older trees are starting to gain dark spots, implying they are absorbing the toxins from the Energon they have been fed with last month. In another two months, they should completely expel these toxins into the air, so I can collect it and analyze the potency of it.

I should also tell you about the dexi-squirrel I fed a light-spotted fruit with. Surprisingly, it is still alive today, though seems a bit ill, like myself. I have fed it some healthy fruits to see if it makes a difference, and it does seem to be doing a little better today than the other days.

The fact that the mechanimal is still alive a month after consuming the contaminated fruit, though ill, is a huge step in my research. I will continue to feed it healthy fruits along with myself and see if it survives, and, to the extent, if it will eventually become toxin-free.

As for myself, I have fed myself with a few fruits every day since last month and feel fine. I am starting to get dizzy again though, but I do not have that Primus-forsaken headache I had earlier. Now, though, if I am to monitor this dexi-squirrel's health, I will have to cut back my supply of palladium-papayas for myself and use them on my dexi-squirrel.

This, of course, will mean more headaches for me in the next time. But I suppose it doesn't matter much.

I have only four Energon cubes left. Even if I don't use any more of it on my trees, I still only have enough for three more months. Maybe four.

But my mechanimals have to fuel too. Though these are contaminated specimens, so no matter how healthy and lively they may seem, I cannot release them into the wild.

When my time comes, I will have to put them down, like I did with the other contaminated specimens. I cannot risk they pass on their contamination to their offspring, or even to the predators that may eventually eat them.

But before that time comes, I will first have to see if the dexi-squirrel will recover from its illness and how much pollution it has left.

If its pollution levels are low enough, or even gone - though I very much doubt that will happen - I may allow it to live and release it into the wild afterwards.

But, well, only time will tell.

Let's hope for the best.

* * *

Entry #59

Solar cycle 1741, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 11, stellar cycle 5.

Guess what? The headache I had a few months ago has returned, and it's worse than ever.

Well, I'm probably only saying that because it hurts like the Pits! I actually don't know if it's better or worse than last time, but it doesn't matter, because it _hurts like the Pits_!

I have only two cubes left now. I spent one cube on feeding my remaining mechanimals. And I have fed the remaining palladium-papayas to my dexi-squirrel, whilst only eating one myself every day since last month. And only eating one daily seems to not be enough to thwart off the pain.

Despite my immense pain and suffering and dizziness and what not, the dexi-squirrel seems to be doing fine. By now, it has recovered from its illness and seems sound as before consuming the spotted fruit. This seems promising.

Unfortunately, after I examined its systems, while it has recovered from its illness, it still has a twenty-one percent pollution level. It is just one percent above the acceptable amount of contamination in living beings... but I'm not sure how to handle this.

I stated myself in an earlier entry that if an individual has pollution levels of twenty percent or lower, it is as good as healthy and out of danger, but beyond twenty percent, it gets more easily sick and has a risk of passing the pollution on to its offspring or the predator that eats it.

Is twenty-one percent high enough to kill it, or is it low enough to let it live?

...

I don't know. I don't know what to do with this.

It _seems_ healthy... and I have put it through so much stress and pain, it would be cruel to just rip away its chance for a happy healthy life.

Then again... it would also be cruel to allow it to live in further pain and suffering if it turns out it is not completely healthy, or it could get sick again. It would be cruel to let it continue to live after all the pain and suffering it's gone through.

This is quite a dilemma... I don't know what to do...

...

We'll make the decision on another date. For now, the report.

The sprouts are growing into fine saplings, still spotless and seemingly healthy and growing big and fast. The older trees are starting to loose their dark spots, and the Energon in their containment fields is looking clean and refined, so the trees are starting to expel the toxins into the air once again.

Next month, when the trees have expelled the toxins, I will collect the air and examine the toxin levels to see how much it has improved since last time.

I may also have to make a decision next month or the month after about what to do with my mechanimals, especially the dexi-squirrel.

...

I think I'll end this entry now, before I get carried away and mark my growing depression.

* * *

Entry #60

Solar cycle 1771, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 12, stellar cycle 5.

We are ending the year, and with it, something else as well.

Now that I only have one cube of Energon left, and the cube I fed my mechanimals with has run dry since last month, I don't have enough Energon left to keep all of us alive.

As such, I have just put down the lilleth, petro-rabbit and robotoppossom a few hours earlier today. Now it's just me and the dexi-squirrel.

I have decided to keep the little guy alive, since he seems to be healthy despite his continuous twenty-one percent pollution levels.

Maybe he's fine. Maybe he can survive in the wild and even have offspring and get eaten without passing on that tiny amount of contamination he has in him to anyone else.

Maybe he can have a happy life in the wild.

So until then, I will keep him around, now rather as a pet than a subject, I guess. I kind of want to name him, but know it's a bad idea. If I name him, I will never be able to let him go.

Regardless, I have no palladium-papayas left for either of us, so for me it means headaches that get worse as the days go by. As for the dexi-squirrel... well, we'll have to see if he stays healthy or not. I do hope he does, but if I'm anything to go for, I wouldn't count on it.

Then again, I have a lot more pollution in me than he does. Last I checked, I think I still had about fifty-four pollution in me. Which is an improvement, of course, considering my earlier sixty-something percent, but it's still above the fatal zone.

And considering the state I have been in lately, and considering we are ending the fifth year of my solitude soon, the amount of years I first estimated I would have left to live in, I don't think there's anything I can do for myself anymore.

Originally, I just meant that my five years estimated time left was due to the amount of Energon I had left in my storage. But now, I have come to realize, it is also because of the pollution inside me.

Had I had more Energon, I might have lived longer than the five years I estimated five years ago, even despite my pollution levels. Pit, if I had enough Energon and a team to help me, I might even have been able to find a way to cure myself and others, with the research I've done in the past five years and the discoveries I've made, as well as find an actual cure to this illness.

But sadly, I am a scientist of low funds and alone in a ruined city, almost out of Energon, sick and not strong or well-equipped enough to survive even one more trip to the outside to get more Energon.

I did go out to the osmium forest once several years ago, and it may have sounded like nothing happened, but I was scared the whole time I was out. I was lucky no one showed up, bots or mechanimals, to attack me. I might not be so lucky a second time.

I wonder how I'm going to secure this lab and still make sure someone can find this place? After all, my research is most important...

I'll figure something out later.

For now, I want to tell you how it's going with my trees. The saplings are growing bigger and faster without being polluted by contaminated Energon, and the older trees' dark spots have completely disappeared, which means they have expelled all the toxins into the air. I have collected it in my vacuum machine and examined it.

The pollution levels do seem to be about halved, but there's still too much of it. Frag!

If I give my trees the same pollution again now, they may be able to purify more of it within the next few months, but they will likely bud next month, and then the fruits will become contaminated, and then I have even more problems to deal with!

Which means I have to dispose of this pollution in some other way...

I do have an idea in mind... but I don't like it.

I hope I won't have to use it.

* * *

Entry #61

Solar cycle 1801, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 1, stellar cycle 6.

Five years have now passed since Vos was bombed. And I have just now used up my last Energon cube.

I also have some sad news to deliver.

My dexi-squirrel, who seemed to be doing fine a month ago, got sick again last week, and while he didn't die like the others, he continued being in pain, feverish and whimpering. It was a sad sight to see, and I know just how he felt. I too am in great pain, but I have to hold on for the remainder of my research.

But I could not allow this pain to continue for the robo-rodent, so I had no choice but to euthanize him a few hours ago. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my life. I was beginning to really like the little fellow.

I also failed to not name him. I ended up calling him Dexter. Fitting name, isn't it?

Naming him made it even harder for me to put an end to his life, but as it turns out, twenty-one percent was just too high after all. I can't believe that one percentage makes so much difference.

I am also uncertain what to do with his body. With the other remaining mechanimals, I did the same as the last time I put down my specimens, I grinded them into powder, but I do not have any trees to give the pollution or enough time left to purify the contamination.

I don't know what to do now. I am getting stressed out now that I don't have any Energon left, my head feels like it's about to explode, I can't think straight, I can't use my trees right now because they are creating new fruits, and I can't go outside to get new Energon because I was forged with this forsaken Grounder body!

...

As you can hear, I am quite upset over Dexter's death. As well as for my situation.

With five years passed, my Energon storage gone and the pollution starting to grab a hold of me, I know my time is quickly slipping away.

And since my death seems inevitable, I suppose I know what to do with the remaining pollution I have left in my vacuum machine.

I will use it on myself. When my time comes.

While this much pollution might not be enough to kill a healthy bot on the spot, it might be enough to kill a dying bot.

So... rather than wait for death to come, when my time arrives, I will simply put an end to it right away. Even if it will be very painful for a short while.

Hopefully it will be short.

I... I can barely keep my composure with all this talk about my death... and the growing realization lately that I really am going to die soon.

Oh Primus... I don't like this... I still have research left to do. I still have discoveries to make, I still have to find a cure, so contaminated bots and mechanimals can survive even after having had high pollution levels over the fatal zone.

I am... I don't know how much more I can take of this...

...

A-about the trees...

The saplings are growing bigger, they should be budding soon. The older trees have started budding, they should become flowers in the next month.

I... I need to make a plan for what I have to do from now on.

I will update you soon.

I hope I can survive the next month without Energon or fruits.

* * *

Entry #62

Solar cycle 1831, orbital cycle 5, lunar cycle 2, stellar cycle 6.

Ugh... I don't feel so good. I'm hungry, and dizzy, and have a major headache. I feel awful.

And worse yet, I have no Energon to consume and make it all better. I'm just realizing now that the end is truly coming. I'm scared.

But... but I have to be strong. Like the Seekers. Think of the Seekers, Helix. Think of Starscream, Jetfire, Slipstream, the strongest and bravest of the Seekers, the Air Commanders of Vos' military. I must be strong like them. I must push on. I must endure.

Okay... okay, I feel a little better now. Not much, but mentally I feel a bit stronger.

So... the small trees have started budding, and the bigger trees are blooming. The small trees' buds are spotless like the rest of the trees, which is very good. Very promising. It's a good sign.

Okay, now that the report is over, I have something more important to relay in this entry, as I do not know how much time I have left.

First, I must clarify that I am dedicating this entire audio-log to you, the bot who finds this lab and my journal.

You are the one who has to continue my research, keep this lab safe and make sure Cybertron's metalo-plants will survive, no matter how this war will turn out.

Secondly, I want you to know, that I will go outside in a moment and throw my key away. But I will lock the door before the key is thrown outside, so that I will be locked in here, so I do not have a way to escape and change my mind about this.

If you're listening to this audio-log, then you obviously have succeeded in finding it, unlocking the door and finding this lab. In that case, congratulations! You are now the head scientist of this lab and the research within!

The key, lock and door, like the rest of this lab, are made of durabyllium and will thus not be able to be destroyed. This lab can only be accessed via the key, and the key is not a normal key. It's not a key-card or any of those old long ones with a strangely shaped tip and a loop in the other end.

No, this key is a ring. More specifically, it's a ring for the middle digit, you cannot wield it on any other finger, remember that. The ring itself has a special pattern of an hourglass, this is a very important detail.

Now, as for the lock, it is a very complex one. It doesn't have a key-hole or a crevice for a key-card. Instead, it's got a hollowed section that has the same pattern as the hourglass on the ring, as well as the roundness of the ring socket itself, but also with four fingers clenched into a fist surrounding it, the ring being on the middle finger.

Uh, this, of course, means that you have to have five fingers to be able to unlock and enter this lab. I, uh... didn't really think about that.

I am truly sorry for all four-fingered or three-fingered or even none-fingered bots. But this is how I have designed my lock, please don't judge me for it.

Anyway, I actually don't know why I'm explaining all this, because if you find this audio-log, you've already figured out the puzzle and thus there's no need for me to explain it!

The only thing that's _really important_ for you to know about the ring is that _under no circumstances whatsoever must you lose the ring, lock yourself in this lab with the ring outside, OR ESPECIALLY NOT LOCK YOURSELF OUTSIDE THE LAB WITH THE RING INSIDE IT! **IF THE RING IS LOCKED INSIDE THE LAB, IT CAN NEVER BE OPENED AGAIN AND ALL MY RESEARCH WILL BE LOST AND WASTED AND I WILL HAVE SACRIFICED MY LIFE AND OTHER LIVES FOR ABSOLUTELY NO FRAGGING REASON! DO YOU HEAR ME?! DO NOT LOSE THAT RING!**_

Ahem.

Now that we've covered that, let's move on to the next item of importance.

In this lab, I have several textbooks on various subjects, but the most important ones are my biology books that I have written myself. You will know them by the signature of Professor Helix of Vos University. Don't bother with the other books, they are highly inaccurate. Mine are the correct ones. Read them.

Furthermore, I have various pieces of equipment for the research and experiments I have conducted, equipment that you will use yourself when you continue my research.

I doubt my metalo-plants are still alive by the time you discover this lab, so don't bother trying to make new ones.

Instead, what I want you to do is go out and collect as many seeds of as many different species of metalo-plants, both trees, grasses, flowers, bushes, reed, meshetables, vines and other plants, as possible. They are very important for this planet, and also for our health and the health of the mechanimals that depend on them in the wild.

I have plenty of small cubes in the various cabinets for you to store the seeds in. I also have a label maker, make sure to label each cube with the name of the species you decide to store its seeds of in. Don't mix the various species in the same cubes, it could mean disaster, and it could turn out that a species you thought had plenty of specimens of is actually extinct because you put the wrong seeds in the cube.

Also, some seeds might not function well among other species, so some might actually die while they are stored away. Make sure that doesn't happen by keeping the species apart in their own containers.

If you run out of small cubes, there are over a hundred large cubes that used to contain Energon, they can be used too.

I would also ask of you to collect samples of mechanimals, but that task is less important, as mechanimals do emerge from the Well like us Cybertronians. And as such, the mechanimals _will_ return some day, even if it will be a long time.

Just in case, however, you can collect samples of some species of mechanimals, especially endangered ones, but don't collect more than ten samples of each species, as the plants take top priority, and I only have so many empty cubes.

Also, as for the mechanimal samples, they obviously don't come to life like metalo-plants do, but it is becoming well-known these days that certain scientists have successfully cloned other bots with empty Protoforms, gained from random bots and stripped off their armor and life, reduced to blank Protoforms to be used for cloning of other already existing bots. These Protoforms could potentially still become their own bots again with a large enough supply of Energon, but they will most likely be used for cloning and thus lose their individuality, though it is possible they could obtain individuality with time.

Anyway, don't use these Protoforms to clone your mechanimal samples. They're two different species and physiologies and it won't work.

But I have heard rumors that the Decepticon scientist named Shockwave is trying to clone Predacons from fossilized remains found here on Cybertron. What he intends to do with them is beyond my knowledge, but certainly Megatron intends to use them in their war against the Autobots. It would not bode well for Cybertron if such horrid creatures were brought back from extinction.

How did I come across these rumors, you ask?

Uh... well...

I surf on the Grid a lot lately. I don't really have anything else to do. I find some obscure articles, videos, news and footages now and then. I think there's a spy among the Decepticons, since there are some secret pages about the Decepticons' plans, such as the plan to clone Predacons. Hopefully this spy will be able to stay hidden and won't be caught blue-handed.

I wonder if there's also a spy among the Autobots? If there's a spy among the Decepticons, and considering the length of this war and all their struggles, it is highly likely both sides have a spy among the other faction.

Where was I? Oh yes, information about the lab.

There are also a few devices in the lab that do some different things. I'm not going to explain what they all do, I will simply leave a datapad with instructions by each of them for you to read yourself.

I can tell you a bit about a few of them though.

Firstly, there's my contaminometer, which is what I call my device to detect pollution in a bot, mechanimal or metalo-plant. Simply take a sample of your Energon, put it in the socket in the device as shown in the instructions, and after a few minutes the device will tell you how polluted you are and how high a percentage you contain. In the same datapad you will also find the description of each pollution percentage to compare to your own, so you can see if you have to worry for your health or not.

Secondly, I have a couple of empty audio-logs in a corner somewhere, which you can use to make your own journal and continue my research and conduct your own. Feel free to make use of it. If you want a copy of this audio-log for some reason, perhaps to make sure it isn't lost, you can easily copy it to one of the empty logs, though it may take some time to download everything as... this is starting to become quite a long log.

Thirdly, I have my vacuum machine, which you will use if you have any suspicions of pollution in the air inside the lab, and to check the potency of the pollution here. Alternately, you can also use it to measure the pollution in this or other cities, as well as forests or Energon deposits for how clean or polluted they are. For the Energon deposits, you can simply use the contaminometer though. I will leave instructions on a datapad on how to use the vacuum machine later.

I also have a label maker, like I said earlier, but that shouldn't be too difficult to figure out how to use. I have a few label makers, just in case. I will leave a datapad for instructions nonetheless, just in case.

I also have a protective visor and a mouth mask lying around somewhere, which you can use if you have to enter an especially contaminated area, or to protect yourself from bio-weapons. I'm not sure if either Autobots or Decepticons are using bio-weapons, but one can never be too careful. I will leave instructions on how to install them onto your face later.

Let's see... is there anything else...? I can't really think of anything...

There aren't any other devices in here that are important for me to talk about in this entry. Whatever other devices are in here, I will just leave instructions on datapads for you to read and figure out for yourself. It shouldn't be a problem. I will try to be as pedagogical as possible. Maybe I'll even leave a few drawings in there if I have the energy to do it.

I will have to conserve my energy as much and as efficiently as possible from now on, so there's not much I can do now.

I will go and throw my key outside now and lock myself in here, so I can wait for death to come.

I will see how long I will last.

If I survive until next month, I will give you an update.

Oh, one more thing. This thing that I have where I take a cube once a month and make a journal entry each month? You don't have to do that as well.

Just fuel when you can, especially if you're a flight frame, because then you can do so much more than I can.

And as for the entries, just make an entry when you feel it's appropriate. It doesn't have to be as part of a specific routine.

This is just one of my eccentricies, my obsessions, my routines to keep me sane and calm. I get easily stressed out if my routines are broken, so I stubbornly keep up with them. Though now, one of these routines are broken, and I do feel a bit stressed already.

But it's nothing you have to concern yourself with. If you have the same needs, you do what you have to do to keep yourself sane and calm. If not, well, you still do what you need to do to keep yourself sane and calm.

Just take care of yourself, stranger.

Make sure you live and survive, and I hope dearly that you will continue my research for me.

Well... until next time. Maybe.

* * *

Entry #63

Solar cycle 1861, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 3, stellar cycle 6.

Two months without Energon. It's barely to stand.

My headache and dizziness is growing worse and worse and worse by the day.

But I'm still alive. Surprisingly.

Like I said in the previous entry, I have thrown the key to this lab outside, and I have locked myself inside. Now I cannot escape, I have no Energon, and I am only waiting for Primus to take me back to the AllSpark.

Now that I know there's no escape for me, I feel strangely calm. Yet at the same time stressed, because I am wondering how much longer I have to wait. How much longer I have to feel this pain in my head and the rest of my frame, as the pain is starting to spread all over my body.

Okay, forget about calm. I am never calm, especially now.

Now, the trees.

The smaller trees are blooming, and the older trees are growing small fruits. I pollinated the older trees, I forgot to mention that the last time, and I have just earlier today pollinated the smaller trees' flowers. They are spotless, like the rest of the trees. I am so anxious to see if the fruits will be the same.

Seeing the healthy trees with fruits now, I hope I will survive long enough to be able to eat them. Hopefully eating them will allow me to live a little longer. Be able to conduct my research just a bit longer.

As for the smaller trees...

...wait. I made a mistake.

No... no, no, no! No! I made a mistake!

I killed the rest of my mechanimal subjects prematurely!

I don't know yet if these trees' fruits are healthy or if they still contain pollution. And now, without my mechanimal subjects, I can't find out if they would get sick from eating them or not.

I mean, they _look_ healthy, they don't have any spots whatsoever, but one can never be sure.

Perhaps... I will have to sample one of the fruits when they come and see if there are _any_ traces left of the toxins of their ancestors. But there will not be any fruits on those two trees until next month.

And who knows if I will be able to survive that long? I barely survived two months without Energon.

Can I really survive _three_?

I mean, I _could_ go into stasis lock and thus I could survive for milennia without Energon, until someone finds me and maybe is able to save me.

...but no. I can't. I can't be selfish anymore.

My future is fading away as the days go by now. Every day I watch my life flash before my eyes, wondering if my time has finally come. Stressing out, and disappointed that Primus continues to make me wait.

Perhaps this is my punishment? For making my mechanimal subjects suffer like they did, for the sake of my research? Is that it?

Is this my punishment for trying to save Cybertron? For trying to find a solution through unethical means?

No matter. If this is my punishment, then I will take it. I will wait, no matter how long I must wait.

The only thing that matters is making sure Cybertron's metalo-plants will survive to make sure the rest of Cybertron survives as well.

Give me your best shot, Primus. I don't fear death.

...

Not much, anyway.

...

Okay, I am a bit scared. But mostly because of the unknown. And because of the waiting.

Just... don't make me wait much longer, please? Don't make me suffer more than necessary, okay?

Listen to me, begging a deity for mercy, like some priest. I am a scientist, not religious.

I... don't know what else to say.

I am in pain. And I am waiting.

I'll... update you next month.

If I'm still alive then...

* * *

Entry #64

Solar cycle 1891, orbital cycle 4, lunar cycle 4, stellar cycle 6.

Ugh... I feel so weak...

Three months without Energon is... really hard on me.

Let's get this over with quickly.

The small trees are finally growing fruits, and I have plucked one of the small fruits prematurely, to examine it. It seems healthy enough. I don't see any pollution in it. Maybe one percent or five percent, but that is lower than ten percent and nothing to worry about.

As far as I'm concerned, I have just bred the toxins out of this lineage of palladium-papaya trees. That, at least, I can call a successful experiment.

So... to conclude, pollution _can_ be bred out of both mechanimals _and_ metalo-plants over a few generations. As long as they are fed with pure, clean Energon, the toxins will eventually disappear.

I still do not have an answer to the problem with the pollution in the air, and I likely won't for what little time I have left to live in.

I may sound fine right now, but I am incredibly weak. I am starving, I am in deep and utter pain, and I am straining myself so much just to stand up and keep my voice from trembling.

...

Yeah, I don't think I have long left. A few days maybe. A week tops. Definitely not another month.

The bigger trees' fruits have grown bigger, but... they're still not ripe yet. I can't eat them yet.

This is so cruel... right there in front of me, eighteen trees filled with fruits that are almost ripe, and I can't eat them yet.

Why can't I eat premature fruits, you ask?

Well... you see, when fruits are still growing, they are incredibly hard, even those made of precious soft metals like palladium. Furthermore, they taste incredibly bitter or sour and are mostly inedible. For the fruits to be ripe, they have to easily pop off the branches they are attached to. If they don't budge with a light pull, they are not ripe yet, and you are better off not eating them.

I have tested all the fruits on the trees today and yesterday, and none of them are ripe. I will continue testing them the next few days, for as long as I live yet, to see if they are ready.

I may become desperate though. Maybe desperate enough to try eating unripe fruits anyway.

...

I don't really want to end this entry.

This... may be my last entry, the last time I'm talking to someone. And that someone... is not even listening right now, as I am talking. It's a recorder I'm talking to. Someone in the future.

That's... actually fascinating. I am speaking to the future. As someone from the past.

This... is a... what's it called... a time box? A time message? I can't really recall its term...

Well, whatever it's called, this is a message to the future.

If there still is a future, that is.

If I could, I would go out and collect the specimens I need for the rest of my research. I would go out there myself and collect the seeds and samples of mechanimals that are necessary.

But I can't. I am stuck here.

It is up to you to continue my research, stranger. It's up to you to collect the seeds and mechanimal samples.

Mechanimal samples can be anything from teeth, claws, horns, optics, ears, pelt spikes, shells, eggs or anything else you can find.

The mechanimals will only be able to be brought back with the help of cloning devices, which you will have to figure out yourself.

The seeds, as well as leaves, roots, bark, stems or whatever else you can find of various metalo-plants, especially meshetables as many of these don't have seeds, you will have to keep in safe storage and wait for the right time until you can sow them and grow new plants to inhabit Cybertron.

Make sure the metalo-plants are sowed and planted before you bring back the mechanimals.

The mechanimals will need the plants to survive on.

Continue my research. Teach others what you have learned here. Make sure the Cybertronians of the future know what to do to keep our planet safe, alive and healthy.

Make sure you find a solution to the problem with the pollution in the air. No matter the methods necessary. No matter how unethical methods you must use.

I have scanned the entire lab and made sure everything in here is sterile and clean. You have nothing to worry about when it comes to air pollution in here.

If you are contaminated yourself... do what you must to cure yourself. You are very important in my research, to continue my research. Make sure you are healthy yourself.

I wish I could meet you... I feel like I have bonded with someone I do not know the name of, someone I have not met, someone I will never meet, someone I will never come face to face with. It's... kind of sad... but at the same time... a relief.

I hope... you feel the same bond that I feel right now, bot of the future.

I hope you will use my research well, and that you will thrive and prosper, and that you will find a solution.

I hope you become the hero we all need right now.

Please save Cybertron.

Do it for me.

For Professor Helix.

Your friend... and teacher.

...

I will end this now. As much as I hate to.

If I survive through the next month... I will make sure to update you.

If not... I will... probably not.

...

Goodbye for now.

* * *

Entry #... 65

Solar cycle... 1893... orbital cycle... 4... lunar cycle... 4... stellar cycle... 6...

I... cannot... do this... anymore... My strength... is slipping... My consciousness... is fading...

I have made... much progress... over the last five years... but it is... not enough...

I still haven't... collected the specimens... needed...

I need... someone to... take over for me...

Whoever is out there... listening... please... help me.

I don't have long... so I will make this quick.

I have locked... the door. The key... is outside somewhere... waiting for someone... to find it.

The lab is made... of durabyllium. Nothing... will penetrate it. Only... the key will open... the lab.

The lab... is sterile. This room... is safe to stay in.

You must continue my... research... in my stead. You must... help save Cybertron... in the long run.

Find and collect as many... specimens of... metalo-plants and... mechanimals as you can...

Keep the CNA samples... safe. The small cubes will do. As will... the larger ones.

If you are a scientist... please, do what you can... to continue my research...

If you are not a scientist... learn. There are datapads in the shelves... which will teach you what you need... to know...

I do not care... if you are a good bot, or bad... just please... have some consideration for our planet...

Use my log for your own research... if you skipped ahead to the last entry... I bet you did... after all, sixty-five entries is a lot... heheh...

Remember me or forget me... I do not care. All I care about... is that Cybertron will still be there... when I return from the Well of All Sparks...

Use my knowledge... and use it to expand your own...

Make your own discoveries... and do what I could not... find a solution to our predicament...

Do not let the Autobots... and Decepticons... destroy Cybertron.

Be the hero... that no one will notice. The hero... who will save us all...

A true hero does not care for fame... and a true scientist does not care for Shanix... and a true Cybertronian does not give up...

I give you my legacy, stranger... May you use it well...

...

My time... has come...

I cannot... hold on... any longer...

I will now... join with the AllSpark... and hope... for the future...

'Til all... are one...

...

...

...

*click*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope it wasn't too daunting to read through that massive chapter.  
> In another story with a similarly long chapter, I said I would never make another chapter like it. Well, I guess I meant in that particular story, because now we've got two massive chapters in THIS story. :P  
> Now we have arrived at the main plot of this story. Starscream now has a purpose in life, something he has to do alone, and the story can now go somewhere.  
> I apologize for having delayed these two chapters for so long, but I am busy with school and other things, so sometimes it takes a while for me to get into 'the zone'. I actually spent the entire autumn vacation working on the previous chapter.  
> But now that these two massive chapters are out of the way, I can get into the main part of the story. I am excited for this:)  
> Though because of school, you may have to wait a bit longer before I post anything new. I try to work on a few chapters of each story at a time, mainly two at a time, so that's why there's a bit of a wait between the new chapters.  
> Regardless, I hope you still enjoy this story and my other ones, and I'm glad to have you drakies for support:)  
> It helps a lot to know my stories are helping at least a few people through these hard times.  
> Thank you for your patience and continued support! :)


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